Madison nonprofits looking to Big Share fundraiser

On March 3, Madisonians will have a new reason to power up their computers: to support the city’s nonprofits. Community Shares of Wisconsin and the Madison Community Foundation will host The Big Share, a one-day online giving event aimed to raise money for a group of 70 area nonprofits.

“We have followed some other more traditional forms of fundraising and this is our first time hosting an online giving day,” said Cheri Buckner, associate director for Community Shares.

Participants can visit thebigshare.org and donate to a specific nonprofit. If the day goes well, the group hopes to make the Big Share an annual event.

The goal is to raise $180,000 the first year and around $300,000 in subsequent years, according to Buckner.

Madison Commons is a partner of Community Shares and is accepting donations during the Big Share.

“Community Shares is a fundraising federation,” Buckner said. “We raise money for 70 local nonprofits who are dedicated to building a fair, just community and protecting our environment.”

While funding for the group’s nonprofit members typically comes from workplace giving, Buckner noted changes in the ways people donate.

“We are aware of the trends in giving and trends in workplace giving and recognize that younger generations of donors either don’t have access to workplace giving campaigns or maybe aren’t as interested in expressing their philanthropic interests through workplace giving campaigns,” said Buckner. “So we are ensuring that we are providing relevant service to our membership basically by expanding the way we raise money for our nonprofits.”

Madison Community Foundation is co-sponsoring the event. Bob Sorge, president of MCF, said the two groups put their resources together to make the day possible.

“One of the things that is key to the Community Foundation is helping good people do good and that is so central to the Big Share,” said Sorge. “We have community organizations that day in and day out do the hard work of moving our society forward.” Sorge also noted one day giving events have become a trend nationally.

The Big Share website is hosted by Razoo.com, a platform specifically designed for one-day giving events. Similar events have been held across the country, including a statewide annual giving day in Minnesota. In the first year, the state raised $14 million.

“We set a goal of $5,000 and 250 new donors,” said Chris Brockel, executive director of the FairShare CSA Coalition, a participating nonprofit.

The group has been a member of Community Shares since late last year. Brockel said the group hasn’t focused on online giving in the past.

“This is kind of the first big general push for us,” said Brockel. “It has definitely made it a lot easier by being part of Community Shares.”

Another participating nonprofit is the American Civil Liberties Union of Wisconsin. Kristin Hansen, the group’s development director, said the group also hopes to raise $5,000 through the event. The ACLU does not charge clients for legal services and therefore depends on individual donations to fund its work that often includes expensive court cases, Hansen said.

Because the Big Share is hosted online, the groups are hoping social media will increase donations.

“The point is to make it easy for people to click, give, and send it on to your friends and say, hey, I just gave to the Big Share and you should too,” said Hansen.

Several prizes will be given out to participating nonprofits to add to their donation dollars and inspire some friendly competition. “Power Hour” prizes are determined based on donors or money raised during an hour block, sponsored by local businesses. Other random prizes called “Golden Tickets” will be awarded throughout the day. Buckner said the Madison Community Foundation will award a $1,500 grand prize to the nonprofit that raises the most money overall.

To kick off the event, organizers will hand out coffee samples on March 3 at several coffee shops in Madison. In the evening, the group will host a free, public event at Plan B. Prizes will be given out to attendees.

Buckner noted the Big Share also serves to raise awareness about local nonprofits.

“We are not just hoping to raise money, we want to get more people involved in these issues as well,” said Buckner.

Donations can be made via thebigshare.org and can be scheduled prior to March 3.