The Great Give raised $1.28 million for area nonprofits, according to information posted on the organization’s website.
The Great Give was a 36-hour online fundraiser Tuesday and Wednesday sponsored by The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven and The Valley Community Foundation, along with a number of area businesses and corporations.
The Valley Indy raised $10,567 from 130 people.
Center Stage Theatre in Shelton raised $48,149. That’s the largest amount collected by any of the hundreds of nonprofits participating.
BHcare in Ansonia raised $28,025.
The Boys and Girls Club of the Lower Naugatuck Valley raised $23,359.
The Valley Indy’s two reporters raised money and awareness during The Great Give by broadcasting Facebook Live videos for 17 hours on Tuesday and for 13 hours Wednesday.
The videos featured live, 30-minute interviews with Valley nonprofit leaders.
Among the nonprofits represented during The Valley Indy Great Give 2017 Webcast:
- Spooner House
- TEAM Inc.
- The Salvation Army
- Adam’s House
- The Housatonic Council of the Boy Scouts of America
- The Valley United Way
- Treasured Time
- St. Vincent de Paul Thrift Shop and Food Pantry
- Valley Shakespeare Festival
- St. Mary-St. Michael School
In addition, Derby’s Mike Cannici hosted two live episodes of “Valley Sports Rewind,” a podcast produced by The Valley Indy.
First, the Hyder family — Rob, Tara and Emma — talked about the Derby Running Club. In the second live “Valley Sports Rewind,” Cannici interviewed Derby High School running guru Nick DiLuggo.
The two Valley Indy reporters squeezed in some news reporting into The Great Give, too.
Reporter Ethan Fry covered an Ansonia public hearing for about an hour before coming back to conduct more Great Give interviews in the Valley Indy office.
On Wednesday morning The Valley Indy conducted a Facebook Live interview with an advocate trying to prevent Derby’s Luis Barrios from being deported.
Then, about 5 p.m. Wednesday, Fry went to the Barrios’ house for a press conference. Barrios was granted a 30-day stay on his deportation, news that was delivered live on ValleyIndy.org and the Valley Indy Facebook page.
During The Great Give, the Valley Indy also interviewed Seymour First Selectman Kurt Miller and Stephan Behuniak, a member of the Board of Selectmen, about the upcoming town and school budget votes.
Seymour Deputy Fire Marshal Timm Willis appeared early Wednesday to talk about a cold-case arson in the town. Willis also shared important info and tips about fire prevention.
In addition to interviewing nonprofit leaders, covering news, and raising money, The Valley Indy reporters also tried to have some fun.
They interviewed Seymour’s Tony Bunosso and Derby’s David Lenart of “2 Dudes Talking Disney,” a podcast.
Reporter Eugene Driscoll went to Shelton to broadcast a few minutes of a princess pizza party at Center Stage.
Jay Carlucci, owner of the Dew Drop Inn in Derby, talked about how he transformed the bar into a destination spot. The Dew Drop Inn graciously sponsored a Valley Indy Great Give Webcast segment.
Ansonia High School senior Amanda Prescott appeared on the webcast to talk about her passion for special effects makeup, and how she plans to pursue a career in movie magic after she graduates.
Prolific Valley Indy Facebook commentator Chris Bowen, of Seymour, chatted with the reporters at 10 p.m. Tuesday about moving back to the Valley, and his thoughts on the movie “Slap Shot.”
Finally, The Valley Indy hosted a live reporters roundtable, featuring several former Valley news hounds.
- Derby’s Joe Musante, formerly of The Connecticut Post and The Evening Sentinel, provided an eyewitness account of The Evening Sentinel’s demise.
- Kate Ramunni, formerly of The Connecticut Post and currently with The New Haven Register, talked about going through a Shelton terrorist’s trash bags.
- Former Valley Indy reporter Jodie Gil talked about what it was like to move from print reporting at The Republican-American and The Hartford Courant to launching the Valley Indy.
- Melvin Mason, formerly of The Connecticut Post, now the editor of The Stratford Star, talked about navigating the sometime choppy waters of Ansonia and Oxford politics. Mason also talked about how he’s getting married this week in New York City!
Editor’s note:
The Valley Indy is extremely grateful to the people who donated money during The Great Give. We were so happy to play a small role in raising awareness about the event. We’re also relieved our video system decided to fail during the last 30 minutes of the 36-hour fundraiser, instead of the first.
