Lending a helping hand just got easier

On May 3, the Community Foundation of North Louisiana opened up its annual 24-hour midnightto-midnight online giving platform at giveforgoodnla.org with searchable profiles of participating nonprofits and a leaderboard to track giving. The 24-hour day of giving, however, turned into 42 hours of area fundraising after technology issues shut down the Web site for most of the day. It was intended that all donations be processed through the Web site in order for nonprofits to be eligible for even more funds through prizes in several categories. Instead, the Community Foundation extended the deadline to the following day at 6 p.m.

News quickly spread, and area nonprofit staffs and volunteers worked together to secure every gift available. Despite the technical difficulties, the community rallied behind its area nonprofits to result in the most successful Give for Good to date, raising more than $1.76 million for North Louisiana nonprofits. The funds will be distributed at a celebration at Red River Brewing on June 22 at 3:30 p.m.

“While the day did not proceed as expected, it was a great success thanks to the relations at the community foundation, is the lead organizer for Give for Good. “We are focusing on the number of people donating each year and getting more and more nonprofits to sign up each year,” she said. “This year we had organizations participate

from Monroe, Natchitoches and Minden, too.” Give for Good donations empower both the donors and the nonprofits. “Anyone can be a philanthropist,” Steadman said. “And unrestricted dollars allow nonprofits to fill whatever little budget holes they like.” “Give for Good also engages young donors,” Steadman added. “It’s a very social media-heavy day with lots of online activity, which is really the new way of giving.”

The incredible momentum has also spread to face-to-face events with donors. This year’s Give for Good included almost 50 events produced by area nonprofits, from Shreveport-Bossier Animal Rescue and determination, creativity and good spirits of all who participated in Give for Good Day,” said Paula Hickman, executive director of the Community Foundation. “I am so proud of our community.”

Jennifer Steadman, director of external Yogi & Friends shelter open house to the Volunteers for Youth Justice “Grub for Good” at Grub Burger Bar.

One of the attractions of gifts made through the Give for Good Web site, however, is that they are amplified by Lagniappe Funds secured by the Community Foundation. “When we say that a gift is enhanced or amplified, it is all thanks to these Lagniappe Fund donors, those that provide the percentage-based match for every gift made during Give for Good,” Steadman said. “There was more than $230,000 in the Lagniappe Fund this year, money that will support all the organizations and make every gift go just a bit further.”

“We only awarded about six of the prizes we had planned on May 3, prior to the Web site failure,” Steadman said. “After that, we canceled all prizes to keep as much fairness and integrity of the day as possible. The funds were rolled into the Lagniappe Fund for distribution.”

“I don’t think the leaderboard tells the complete story,” Steadman said. “There was more than $100,000 collected offline, meaning nonprofits collected those dollars and reported the totals to us. While we entered those amounts to the leaderboard, we were not able to capture individual gifts, so the total gifts number is not accurate. The amount of total dollars raised, $1.76 million, is very close, though.”

Martha Marak with the North Louisiana Food Bank said her organization raised $19,072 during Give for Good. “We will use the funds to provide food for our programs,” she said. “We provide food to 35,000 individuals through a collaboration of 130 non-profit organizations and churches.”

“For any age donor, it has to be easy to donate,” Marak said. “Web-based or an automatic monthly donation seem to be the easiest. We have a great, fun way to donate on our Web site though a virtual reality food drive. It’s a cartoon of a lady shopping in a virtual grocery store. Also, a little each month can add up to a larger amount at the end of the year. We like to remind our donors that $1 donated to the Food Bank is equal to $10 worth of food.”

The Louisiana Tech University Foundation appears to have received the largest number of donations. Elaine Mayo Poynter, director of annual giving at the Louisiana Tech University Foundation, said, “All our gifts will be used for student scholarships. In a year when TOPS funding is front-page news and on the minds of many students and parents, it is more important than ever that Louisiana Tech have the ability to offer an outstanding educational experience to our current and future students.”

“GiveForGoodNLA was a perfect way to engage young people,” Poynter said. “Many made their first gift to the University. Most everyone can give $10, and on this day many $10 gifts were combined to make a big difference for our students and the future of Louisiana Tech University.”

Holy Angels received the largest total amount of donations. Laurie Boswell, chief executive officer with Holy Angels, said, “In the first two years, Holy Angels was blessed by more than $400,000 raised through Give for Good. We do not yet know our final numbers for 2016, as the Lagniappe Fund contribution has not yet been announced.

We do know that we finished the day with $291,598 in donor contributions.”

“The momentum set by Give for Good introduces the public to the area’s community needs,” Boswell said. “Through the leadership of the Community Foundation, new philanthropists find the joy in supporting those in need and the fulfillment of building a legacy of giving.”

A list of participating nonprofits is broken down by subject matter and can be found at www.giveforgoodnla.org, and you can call the Community Foundation of North Louisiana at (318) 221-0582 or visit www.cfnla.org.

–Susan Reeks