2022 Giving Challenge Raises more than $16 Million to Support Nearly 700 Nonprofit Organizations

More than $75 million has been raised over the last decade through eight online giving events supporting nonprofit efforts to address community needs and opportunities.

SARASOTA, FL – Within 24 hours on April 26 and 27, donors across the community united with an outpouring of support for the 2022 Giving Challenge, raising $16,017,021 million for 669 participating nonprofit organizations in Sarasota, Manatee, Charlotte, and DeSoto counties. With nearly $9.9 million provided in community support and prizes from 46,283 donors and 83,074 total gifts, along with $6,149,105 million in matching funds from The Patterson Foundation, the 2022 Giving Challenge affirmed our community’s generosity with now having raised more than $75 million over the last decade through eight Giving Challenges.

The 2022 Giving Challenge – an online, 24-hour giving day – propels generous charitable giving across Sarasota, Manatee, Charlotte, and DeSoto counties. In addition to raising flexible, unrestricted funds for nonprofit organizations to respond to community needs, it also strengthens those organizations to support long-term effectiveness. Since the first Giving Challenge was hosted in 2012, the event has grown from 109 participating organizations to nearly 700.

“The Giving Challenge provides the launching power for so much good to be realized, and to build the power of critical nonprofit partners in our community,” said Roxie Jerde, President and CEO of the Community Foundation. “It takes all of us to come together and create a community where everyone can thrive. The Giving Challenge shows how powerful we can be when we work in unison for the betterment of everyone.”

As a way to engage and strengthen the community’s philanthropic spirit during the Giving Challenge, The Patterson Foundation once again generously provided a 1:1 match for all unique donations, up to $100 per donor, per organization, which amounted to $6 million in additional funds for local nonprofits. While this matching opportunity encourages participation in charitable giving at all levels, it also helps define the Giving Challenge as one of the most unique giving days in the nation.

"Over the last decade, the Giving Challenge has evolved from a novel donor opportunity to an inspiring celebration of our vital nonprofit community," said Debra Jacobs, president and CEO of The Patterson Foundation. "The tens of thousands who capitalized on The Patterson Foundation's match and contributed to this year's astounding total affirm our belief that we all have a generosity gene waiting to be sparked into action."

A hallmark of the Giving Challenge is its “Be The One” philosophy, which reflects the Community Foundation’s belief that everyone can be a philanthropist and have the potential to impact a person, cause, and community. While the event is first and foremost an online event, many organizations create in-person experiences to capture the energy surrounding the Giving Challenge. This year more than a dozen “pop up giving stations” were held across southwest Florida and included movie screenings, concerts, dining events, and family activities.

In the coming month participating nonprofits are eligible for more than $230,000 in additional prize opportunities, ranging from “Best Video Commercial” to “Best Board Member Engagement,” and “Best Community Event.” These prizes are made available through the generosity of local foundation partners.

“The Giving Challenge is about possibility,” said Jerde. “Through collaboration, we can come together and turn the aspirations we have into reality. Every gift contributes to our community’s well-being and we are grateful to The Patterson Foundation for its continued belief that anyone can be a philanthropist.”

Since 2012, the Giving Challenge has acted as a catalyst for connection, helping donors throughout our region show their passion for local nonprofit organizations by providing more than $75 million in unrestricted funding through eight Giving Challenges to support their missions, with $30 million contributed from The Patterson Foundation. All participating nonprofit organizations demonstrated a commitment to transparency by developing an in-depth profile in The Giving Partner, an online resource that helps donors make informed decisions through holistic information on a nonprofit’s core mission and needs, programmatic impact, leadership, planning, and financial health.

The Giving Challenge was presented by the Community Foundation of Sarasota County, with giving strengthened by The Patterson Foundation. Prize support came from Manatee Community Foundation, Charlotte Community Foundation, and the William G. and Marie Selby Foundation.

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About the Community Foundation of Sarasota County: The Community Foundation of Sarasota County is a public charity founded in 1979 by the Southwest Florida Estate Planning Council as a resource for caring individuals and the causes they support, enabling them to make a charitable impact on the community. With assets of $520 million in more than 1,570 charitable funds, the Community Foundation awarded grants and scholarships totaling $27.5 million dollars last year in the areas of education, the arts, health and human services, civic engagement, animal welfare and the environment. Since its founding, the Community Foundation has been able to grant more than $350 million to area nonprofit organizations to our community thanks to the generosity of charitable individuals, families, and businesses. For more information, visit www.CFSarasota.org or call (941) 955-3000.