This week, the Crawford Heritage Community Foundation will present gift checks to the local charitable organizations that participated in Crawford Gives. There will be two check presentation events. For those organizations located in Western Crawford County, the check presentation will take place at 4pm on Wednesday, November 20, 2019 at 415 Chestnut Street in Meadville. For those located near Titusville, a second event will be held at 2pm on Thursday, November 21 at the Titusville YMCA, 505 W. Walnut Street.
During the inaugural Crawford Gives, more than 1,700 of our friends, family and neighbors came out and made generous gifts to more than ninety nonprofit organizations. Over $207,694.44 was given to make Crawford County a better place to live, learn, work and raise a family.
Love in the Name of Christ of Titusville received the most gifts, a total of $13,721.34. Women’s Services had the most donors at ninety-two and received the second largest total amount in gifts, a total of $10,066.18. The event also attracted many people new to giving. Each organization connected with approximately nine new donors and raised more than $600 from people who gave for the first time to their organization on Crawford Gives.
Thanks to the generosity of Crawford Gives presenting sponsor Acutec Precision Aerospace, Inc. and an anonymous donor, all gifts had additional prorated amounts combined with the donation to make the impact of the donation even larger. Every dollar given was matched with an additional twenty-two cents. Other sponsors and donors gave an additional $6,600 to twenty specific organizations. The WiNS Project was selected at random to receive a $250 grant underwritten by the law firm of Pepicelli, Youngs and Youngs.
“We want to encourage a culture of philanthropy in Crawford County,” says Christian Maher, Executive Director of the Crawford Heritage Community Foundation and Crawford Gives. “Making it easier for our neighbors to support the organizations and causes they care deeply about is one of the main motivations behind Crawford Gives.”
Crawford Gives provided a platform for participating nonprofits to share their stories and connect with donors. These organizations gained knowledge to help them become more skillful in digital fundraising, develop stewardship and grow their donor base. “Our aim with Crawford Gives is also to provide local organizations with the toolkit to more successfully fundraise on their own,” says Maher. “One of the best ways to support these organizations is to equip them with sustainable fundraising practices that they can easily manage themselves.”
Maher is grateful for the work local organizations put in to make this year’s Crawford Gives a success. “In addition to the generous and caring people in our community who gave on Crawford Gives, the event was also successful because of the enthusiasm and support of the participating organizations,” says Maher. “They connected with community members, spread the word on social media and showed how philanthropy empowers the important work they do every day in Crawford County. We’re excited for what we can accomplish next year and in years to come.”
For more information, visit www.crawfordgives.org. Contact Christian Maher at executive@crawfordheritage.org, 814-336-5206 with questions.
