Community Fundraising Event Raises $33,200 for Local Nonprofits

May 18, 2018—Hundreds of donors gave more than $33,000 to Racine County nonprofits during a 24-hour giving event organized by United Way of Racine County, May 17 and 18. The event, Do More 24 Racine, was open to any registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit in Racine County and gave local nonprofits the online tools and resources needed for online fundraising success. The organizations who received the top amounts, from least to most, were Over Our Head Players, Inc; Episcopal Diocese of Milwaukee Hospitality Center; H.O.P.E. Safehouse, Inc.; Racine Zoological Society; and Four Our Community.

Do More 24 Racine is the first local 24-hour giving event of this kind coordinated by United Way of Racine County, and it was intended to help local nonprofits raise as much money as possible during a 24-hour period. From noon to noon, May 17-18, 500 individuals made donations using an online platform created especially for the event.

To help keep this momentum going, Do More 24 Racine’s website will be accepting donations until May 31. So it’s not too late to support the participating Racine County nonprofits via DoMore24Racine.org.

“This was a phenomenal first-year showing of generosity from our community. I am so grateful to be reminded just how generous our community is,” said Rodney Prunty, United Way of Racine County president. “There was a lot of excitement around this event from our nonprofit partners, donors, and volunteers who got involved.”

In addition to fundraising, the event provided an opportunity for local companies, including Johnson Financial Group, Modine, and Baird, to coordinate volunteer activities at sites throughout the community.

Johnson Financial Group’s annual “Service Day Every Day” volunteer event coincided with Do More 24 Racine, so it became a perfect partnership opportunity. This is an event Johnson Financial employees look forward to every year, according to CEO Jim Popp.

“Our associates do great work in our communities all year long, and Service Day is a special day where we volunteer collectively to make an even greater impact in our communities,” Popp said. “Giving back is the right thing to do. We live and work here and we volunteer here too. That’s how we make our communities better.”

In addition to celebrating the spirit of giving throughout Racine County, a goal of Do More 24 Racine was to create greater impact by working together collectively, which is what inspired United Way to coordinate the event.

“We know that this kind of fundraising platform might be out of reach, or cost prohibitive, to individual nonprofits,” Prunty said. “In addition, the buzz created by an online giving event is intended to help lift all of the nonprofits up together.”