After last year’s national record-crushing 75,000 donations totaling $25.2 million, North Texas Giving Day is back with the hope that North Texas will rise to the challenge and outdo itself once again. With new community events, extra time to donate and additional prizes, the sixth annual North Texas Giving Day aims to raise the giving day bar once again to benefit more North Texas nonprofits. On September 18, 2014, donations can be made 6 a.m. to midnight to more than 1,500 certified nonprofits listed on the new website www.NorthTexasGivingDay.org. Donations $25 and above will be amplified by $2 million in bonus funds and prizes.
“Giving Day is a wonderful day to celebrate the community and support the important work of nonprofits serving North Texas,” said Brent Christopher, president and CEO, Communities Foundation of Texas and North Texas Giving Day founder. “Each year, we are amazed by the continued generosity of the donors that participate in this day and we hope that this year we raise even more money for North Texas nonprofits.”
New this year, Communities Foundation of Texas will host the Dallas County Donation Station with the inaugural North Texas Giving Day Kids Give from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at its headquarters, 5500 Caruth Haven Lane, Dallas, TX. The Kids Give sponsored by DFWChild provides kids a chance to donate their loose change as well as do hands-on philanthropic and kid-friendly activities, including assembling ‘Hope’ packages for kids in the hospital, donating canned foods, planting seeds for community gardens and making pet toys for shelter animals. Visitors may purchase lunch from local food trucks like Ruthie’s Rolling Café and Easy Slider, watch complimentary showcase performances by Anita N. Martinez Ballet Folklorico, Dallas Children’s Theater, Dallas Black Dance Theatre, Junior Players, Lone Star Circus, Lone Star Wind Orchestra, Parkinson Voice Project and Shakespeare Dallas, and see animals from Dallas Zoo, Equest Ponies and SPCA of Texas. A Goodwill truck will also be onsite accepting donations.
In 2013, 796 Dallas County nonprofits raised more than $15 million on Giving Day, a 65% increase from donations in 2012.
Information on other Donation Stations and nonprofit-hosted events can be found on www.NorthTexasGivingDay.org’s “Events” page.
The prizes for this year’s Giving Day range from $1,000 to $10,000 and will be awarded in various categories, including most donors, largest increase in unique donors, best integrated marketing campaign and random prizes. A full list of prizes can be found at www.NorthTexasGivingDay.org under “Rules/Prizes.”
North Texas Giving Day was launched in 2009 by Communities Foundation of Texas with ongoing support from Center for Nonprofit Management. Bonus funds and prizes have been contributed by Bank of America, Katherine C. Carmody Trust Fund, Communities Foundation of Texas, Community Foundation of North Texas, The Dallas Foundation, Dallas Women’s Foundation, The Hersh Foundation, Hunt Consolidated’s Hunt Cares Campaign, Meadows Foundation, Granville C. and Gladys H. Morton Fund of Communities Foundation of Texas, The Rees-Jones Foundation, Sage Payment Services, Sid W. Richardson Foundation, Harold Simmons Foundation, The Swan Smith Fund of Communities Foundation of Texas, Mike and Mary Terry Family Foundation and an anonymous donor. WFAA Channel 8, The Dallas Morning News, MySweetCharity, 98.7 KLUV, 100.3 JACK FM, 103.7 KVIL, Fort Worth Business Press, Living Magazine, Classical Rush, Texas Tribune and DFWChild are the 2014 North Texas Giving Day media sponsors.