Fox Valley charities to donate to on Giving Tuesday
So you camped in a parking lot on Thanksgiving and snagged yourself a 60-inch TV for an incredibly low price.
And you have your credit card at the ready for Cyber Monday online deals.
That must mean you have a few bucks in your pocket. And local charities are asking you to give some to them, as they participate in the #GivingTuesday campaign Dec. 1.
The global effort was started four years ago by 92nd Street Y, a community and performing arts center in New York City. Noticing the focus on consumerism on Black Friday and Cyber Monday, people thought at least one day ought to be dedicated to thinking about the needs of others. It encourages people to make gifts of money and community service.
And to make it even better, some foundations are offering to match the financial donations you make Tuesday, especially if you donate electronically.
• The Illinois Children's Healthcare Foundation and some anonymous donors are matching donations made Tuesday, up to $30,000, to the Northern Illinois Food Bank You can donate online at solvehungertoday.org; by texting “SOLVE” to 91999; or in person from 5 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Metra station in Geneva. The food bank will also accept donations of food at the train station.
“Every donation we receive throughout the year makes an impact in the lives of our hungry neighbors, but for this one day we're excited to help our generous donors maximize their donation through this Giving Tuesday matching gift opportunity,” Julie Yurko, Northern Illinois Food Bank president and CEO, said in a news release. “We are proud to say that we can stretch every $1 donated into $8 of food for neighbors in need, and on Giving Tuesday we'll be able to turn every $1 into $16 of food.”
• The Grand Victoria Foundation, which uses part of the profits from the casino in Elgin, is offering to match donations made to many Elgin-area organizations.
Participants are the Association for Individual Development; Bethlehem Lutheran Child Development Center; Boys and Girls Club of Elgin; Centro de Informacion; Children's Theatre of Elgin; Elgin Area Historical Society Museum; Elgin Master Chorale;
Elgin Partnership for Early Learning; Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestra; Food for Greater Elgin; Girl Scouts of Northern Illinois; Greater Elgin Family Care; Hamilton Wings; One Hope United; Open Door Health Center; PADS of Elgin Inc.; Renz Addiction Counseling Center; Senior Services Associates; Summit School; The Literacy Connection; VNA Health Care; Well Child Center; and YWCA Elgin.
For links for online giving, visit ilgive.com.
• And the Retirement Research Foundation is matching donations made that day to the Elderday Center in Batavia.
Others to help
Many local organizations have joined an Illinois chapter of the campaign. #Ilgive has a searchable list by cause category on its website, ilgive.com. The groups listed accept electronic donations.
Besides the ones listed above, local ones include:
• Fox Valley Academy of Music Performance in Aurora.
• Lazarus House shelter in St. Charles.
• Marklund, which has a facility in Geneva.
• Easter Seals of DuPage and Fox Valley.
It could also pay to check with your credit card company to see if it is doing any matching. For example, Discover Card will kick in an extra 2 percent for customers who donate their Cashback Bonus points to select causes.
People who donate through PayPal.com will have 1 percent added to their donations to certain charities, including the food bank, Moose Charities and Suicide Prevention Services. All of the donation will go to the charity.