Do good. Feel good. And make sure your money’s being used to make a difference.
More than 200 non-profit agencies — including more than a dozen in the lower Valley — are participating in “The Great Give 2012,” a 36-hour gift-a-thon launching 8 a.m. Tuesday, Oct. 16.
Great Give 2012 ends at 8 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 17.
On Tuesday morning, go to The Great Give 2012 website to make a donation.
The 36-hour drive is a project of The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven. It raises awareness about the giveGreater.org website — and, naturally, to convince people to give money to pre-screened non-profits.
Local non-profits benefiting from this year’s “Great Give” include BHCare (formerly known as the Birmingham Group), the Salvation Army, the Lower Naugatuck Valley Parent Child Resource Center, Team, Inc. and Area Congregations Together.
A complete list is at the end of the story.
Making donations to a participating non-profit agency is easy.
“It’s a way people can research an interest. If they are interested in education, they can find every organization in their local area helping that cause,” said Matthew Higbee, a spokesman for The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven.
Great Give 2012 is set apart by the fact each non-profit has been vetted, so donors know their money is being used for the proper purpose. Donors can review tax information submitted by the non-profit to the IRS.
“The website is a way to fact check the organization you are giving money to so that you know you are giving money to a credible organization,” Higbee said. “You can see their financial statements, you can see their mission and purpose and whether that aligns with how you want to give your money.”
In addition to straight donations, there are a number of “prizes” available to Great Give 2012 non-profits — including one that is very local.
The Valley Community Foundation, based in Derby, is sponsoring the “Valley Gives” prize. VCF will match donations given to Valley-based non-profits up to $100. For example, if a donor gives $25 to the Salvation Army in Ansonia and $25 to Team, Inc., the VCF will give $25 to the Salvation Army and $25 to Team, Inc.
The VCF has a total matching pool of $20,000 available, according to James Cohen, VCF president.
Click here to read about all the “prizes” available.
Charities in New Haven and the lower Valley have been marketing Great Give 2012 through a variety of websites and social media.
“Some of the non-profits in the Valley are doing some very creative things using social media,” Higbee said. “The most active in the Valley right now is probably Center Stage. They are doing some good things on their Facebook page and they are going to have computers at their place so people can make donations.”
Click here for the Great Give Facebook page.
Click here to follow the event on Twitter.
The list of local non-profits participating in The Great Give:
Ansonia
BHcare
Friends of the Ansonia Nature Center
The Salvation Army (Greater Valley Corps)
Derby
Griffin Hospital
Housatonic Council, Boy Scouts of America
Lower Naugatuck Valley Parent Child Resource Center
Valley Community Foundation
Team, Inc.
Shelton
Shelton Economic Development Corporation
Valley United Way
Boys & Girls Club of the Lower Naugatuck Valley
Area Congregations Together
Center Stage Theatre
Wesley Heights
