Learning Generosity

Where did you first learn generosity?

“My mother was my guiding light for what generosity looks like,” Matt Gassen, CEO of Feeding South Dakota, will tell you.

So, too, will Jessica Benson of Rapid City, the 2018 Miss South Dakota Outstanding Teen. “My mom instilled a value of volunteerism in me at an early age. When I was eight years old, I was already signing up to volunteer at different events.”

South Dakotans in the Black Hills, and all across the state, are taking their early memories of generosity and using them to encourage others to give back as part of South Dakota’s first-ever state-wide Day of Giving. South Dakota Day of Giving will be held on Giving Tuesday, November 27, 2018. Already, more than 250 nonprofits in the state have signed up to participate.

There’s an added incentive for nonprofits to participate, and donors to give, on South Dakota Day of Giving. More than $100,000 in cash prizes from the South Dakota Prize Pool is being awarded to organizations. Already, nonprofits have won money for posting on social media about their early memories of generosity, and for coming up with the most creative ways to reach new donors on Giving Tuesday.

The prize money has been donated by individuals, businesses and foundations who wish to encourage giving—in any amount—in South Dakota.

The goal of South Dakota Day of Giving is not only to raise funds for nonprofits, but to increase the number of donors who give across the state and build the capacity of South Dakota nonprofits to reach more people. Research conducted by Campbell Rinker and “The Chronicle of Philanthropy” indicates that 22 percent of people who give on a day of giving are new donors to the nonprofit.

Beth Massa, regional director for foundation relations at South Dakota Community Foundation and a volunteer advisory board member for South Dakota Day of Giving, says the day has the potential to really enhance the work of nonprofits across the state. “Whether you’re able to donate $5 or $1,000 or take an hour to volunteer for a nonprofit you care deeply about, every act of generosity on South Dakota Day of Giving will make a positive impact on our entire state.”

Nonprofits can register to participate in South Dakota Day of Giving for free online at www.southdakotagives.org.

Copy courtesy of South Dakota Gives

What’s a Giving Day?

It’s one day. And it’s all day. It’s an “all hands on deck” approach to fundraising in which nonprofit staff members and volunteers work to raise as much money as humanly possible in a 24-hour period.

Three Ways to Help

  1. Visit www.southdakotagives.org and make sure your favorite nonprofits are signed up to participate.
  2. Spread the word about South Dakota Day of Giving by following the day on social media.
  3. Offer to help your favorite nonprofit raise money on South Dakota Day of Giving by calling your friends and encouraging them to make a gift online on Giving Tuesday, November 27, 2018.