Early Giving Has Already Generated $223,000; Emergency Relief Fund is Growing 

            PHOENIX, Ariz. (March 31, 2020): Nearly 1,000 501(c)3 nonprofit organizations have registered for the 24-hour online fundraising event, Arizona Gives Day, which begins at 12:01 a.m. on Tuesday, April 7.

Last year, Arizona Gives Day raised $3.6 million to bring the total since 2013 to $17 million, “but we’ve never gone into Arizona Gives Day in such an uncertain environment making this year’s event even more critical for nonprofit organizations of every size in every community that are facing severe financial challenges in their ability to provide services and resources to their communities,” said Alliance of Arizona Nonprofits CEO Kristen Merrifield. “Our local nonprofit community is already reporting significant losses, decreases in staff and volunteer capacity and will likely see an increase in demand for services.”

Presented by FirstBank and in collaboration with Arizona Grantmakers Forum, Arizona Gives Day early giving, which began March 17, already has generated $233,000 for the 975 registered nonprofits and nearly $10,000 has been contributed to the Nonprofit Emergency Relief Fund that gives donors the option to add donations at check out. All Emergency Relief Fund donations will be distributed evenly among all participating organizations.

A recent Alliance of Arizona Nonprofits survey put the projected financial impact of the current COVID-19 pandemic that has caused many cancelations and postponements reaching at a minimum of $36 million.

There are two ways to donate to Arizona nonprofits during this critical time:

• Donate now during the early giving period or on Arizona Gives Day on April 7 at azgives.org
• Donate directly to the Emergency Relief Fund: as an add-on at checkout once a donor gives to a particular nonprofit on Arizona Gives Day or by directly visiting azgives.org/relieffund

Donors may prefer to donate during a specific block of time on Arizona Gives Day to help a nonprofit win a Power Hour an earn additional funds from the prize pool. Arizona Gives Day, a collaboration between the Alliance of Arizona Nonprofits and the Arizona Grantmakers Forum, is an annual online giving movement uniting nonprofits to celebrate and increase philanthropy in Arizona through giving.

Donors also have the option of creating a fundraising page to benefit their favorite nonprofit organization.

For interested donors, AzGives.org offers an advanced search filter to find nonprofits by specific criteria, area of focus, and which donations may qualify as an Arizona tax credit. Donors also can create an account to pre-schedule donations or can check out as a guest, set up recurring donations, and make changes to their giving throughout the year.

For more information, visit www.azgives.org