It is said that everything is bigger in Texas and for North Texas Giving Day, that saying holds true. The sixth annual day of giving founded by the Communities Foundation of Texas (CFT) broke its own record by raising more than $26.3 million for nonprofits in the North Texas area.
This year’s day of giving surpassed 2013’s record-setting result of $25.2 million in just 18 hours. The number of donors also surpassed 2013 – 98,000 to 75,000. In total, 1,580 nonprofits benefited from the funds raised by this year’s North Texas Giving Day, which began Thursday morning and ended at midnight.
“Today, donors showed unbridled enthusiasm for this community they clearly care so much about,” said Brent Christopher, president and CEO of CFT. “From Keller to Kenya, Arlington to Australia, Dallas to Denmark, local nonprofits received gifts from all over the world.” Christopher added that gifts came in at a rate of 18 per second.
The funds didn’t just come from returning donors. According to CFT, 26 percent of donations were from first-time givers to their chosen charity. Gifts of at least $25 and up to $50,000 were eligible to receive matching funds. Donations were made exclusively online at https://www.northtexasgivingday.org/
Westlake Academy Foundation led all nonprofits for amount raised, bringing in $494,012 from 228 gifts. Ursuline Academy of Dallas Foundation was a distant second with $396,113, though it did have a slight edge in total gifts (229). North Texas Food Bank led all nonprofits in the “large organizations” category with $381,101 from 2,082 gifts; Denton Animal Shelter Foundation, meanwhile, topped the “small organizations” list with $75,062 from 266 gifts. Organizations such as these were awarded bonus prizes for hitting these milestones.
In total, $200,000 in bonus money was awarded this year. Some of the organizations that received these funds were:
- Paulie Ayala Foundation – Most Unique Donors for New Nonprofit, $5,000
- Minnie’s Food Pantry – Largest Increase in Number of Unique Donations, $5,000
- Bridges Safehouse Inc. – Dallas Woman’s Foundation Prize, $3,500
- The Dallas Woman’s Foundation Prize was given to nonprofits that had 75 percent of their programs serving women. The organization also had to be a grantee of the Dallas Woman’s Foundation.
You can see the full results from the 2014 North Texas Giving Day at https://www.northtexasgivingday.org/#leaderboard
