Thursday is Thanksgiving Day and next Tuesday is a day of giving, thanks.
The staff at the Golden Belt Community Foundation have some ambitious goals for this year’s Giving Tuesday, on Nov. 28.
GBCF joined the Giving Tuesday movement four years ago. In this modern tradition, the day has been set aside nationwide to celebrate the generosity of giving. However, the giving doesn’t have to be limited to a single day.
Sue Cooper, program officer at the Golden Belt Community Foundation, encourages people to make a donation to one of the organization’s endowed funds anytime this month.
At this time of year, consumers are often encouraged to “Shop Local.” This year area residents are encouraged to “Live Local, Give Local.”
To bring new ideas to the GBCF’s 2017 Giving Tuesday, the staff recruited an event advisory committee that included Julie Mazouch, Andrea Bauer and Jessica Milsap.
“The committee has local spirit and local pride,” Cooper said. “They wanted to make sure this event focused on the good of the community.”
Organizers hope to nearly triple the number of donors from last year, to 1,000. There’s a donor counter on the nonprofit organization’s website (https://goldenbeltcf.org), to track their progress.
Giving back
New for 2017, every elementary school in Barton, Pawnee, Rush and Stafford counties that participates in the giving event is eligible for a $500 classroom mini-grant, Cooper said.
Organizers also have a pool of more than $25,000 that will be divided proportionately among the organizations that participate in Giving Tuesday.
Because the day is intended as a celebration of generosity, there will be a come-and-go Giving Tuesday celebration from 5-7 p.m. Tuesday at Great Bend Coffee, 2015 Lakin Ave.
Ways to Give
“Giving is meant to be easy and natural,” Cooper said.
Go online at goldenbeltcf.org or mail a gift to the Golden Belt Community Foundation, 1307 Williams St., Great Bend, KS 66530. The telephone number is 620-792-3000 and email may be sent to gbcf@goldenbeltcf.org.
The GBCF office will be open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Giving Tuesday, or stop by one of the following Giving Tuesday sites between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. on Nov. 28:
• Hoisington Chamber of Commerce, 123 N. Main St.
• Larned Chamber of Commerce, 502 Broadway St.
• E-Z Mart, 1409 Main St., La Crosse
• Stafford County Courthouse Annex, 210 E. 3rd St., St. John
Give local
GBCF Director Christy Tustin said no gift is too small and there is strength in numbers when people give where they live.
“Giving Tuesday is one of the best platforms because anybody can give at a level they are comfortable with and to a cause that means something to them.” GBCF has more than 50 endowed funds, she noted.
“Your gift stays right here, helping local charities with long-term funding needs. GBCF stands strong behind the nonprofits that serve our area. Endowments provide a permanent source of continual funding from invested capital, meaning the gift you give today leaves a legacy forever.”
