Centre Co., PA (WJAC) — In Centre County, Centre Gives, the annual, multi-million-dollar online fundraiser kicked off Wednesday morning and once again, donors are responding in a big way.
These days, with the internet a major factor in so much of what we do, online fundraisers are very common, but 12 years ago, it was the first year for Centre Gives.
“We didn’t know what to expect. Other giving days had happened around the country and we thought we would try it here. We had breakfast to kick it off that day. We were with a number of donors when the site went live. We were sitting there watching the gifts come in, just being amazed.”
Since the first edition of Centre Gives operated through the Centre Foundation, more than $14 million has been raised for dozens of Centre County nonprofits and service organizations; with over two million dollars collected last year alone.
More than 200 organizations will benefit this year on the Centre Gives tally board, the numbers continually changing.
There were close to 500 donations in the first half hour alone on Wednesday morning.
It’s a 36-hour fundraiser, with incentives and special bonuses throughout.
Donors can get on board anytime.
“It doesn’t matter whether it’s early or late. If you have a particular organization you’re working with, you can see if they’re trying to compete. There are prize hours throughout the event. During those prize hours, organizations compete for additional grants on top of what they’re making.”
Centre Gives fundraising wraps up 8 o’clock Thursday evening with a celebration festival at Bellefonte’s Talleyrand Park.
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