Communities Foundation of Texas and The Dallas Foundation provided $300,000 in matching funds to spur North Texans’ donations

DALLAS (May 31, 2009) – Beginning at 12:01 a.m. on May 20, more than 8,000 generous North Texans logged on to donorbridgetx.org to make a contribution to their favorite nonprofit organizations in celebration of the first-ever Dallas Giving Day. The results far exceeded expectations: More than $4 million was donated to 353 organizations across the area.

The special day marked the launch of DonorBridge, a searchable website that connects potential supporters with nonprofit organizations in North Texas. The website includes general financial information about all nonprofits in the U.S. But each of the specially participating local nonprofits created a detailed profile explaining its programs, finances and results, making it simple for anyone to learn about the organizations and choose where to invest their charitable time and money wisely. DonorBridge was created by Communities Foundation of Texas in partnership with the Center for Nonprofit Management and with support from The Dallas Foundation.

Based on similar matching programs in other cities, organizers had hoped to reach at least $1 million in gifts during the DonorBridge launch.

“The North Texas community blew our expectations out of the water,” said Brent Christopher, president and CEO of Communities Foundation of Texas, which developed DonorBridge with national nonprofit software leader Blackbaud. “The biggest thing Dallas Giving Day did was give people a reason to give. The nonprofit and donor communities took the DonorBridge launch and turned it into a region-wide celebration of giving. They are using this website to tell their stories and connect people’s interests with nonprofit missions.”

Communities Foundation of Texas and The Dallas Foundation made $200,000 available for the public matching day on May 20 and another $100,000 available to donor-advised fund holders of the two foundations during a preview day on May 19. Online grant recommendations from donor-advised funds were matched at 50 cents on the dollar up to $2,500 per fund. On May 20, credit card donations were matched dollar for dollar up to $2,500 while funds lasted. Together, these matching funds were leveraged by nonprofits through DonorBridge to produce more than $3.8 million in additional gifts. As a result of Dallas Giving Day, 98 percent of the agencies with detailed profiles in DonorBridge received donations.

“The Dallas Giving Day match made donors’ dollars go further while raising awareness of the critical role nonprofits play in our community,” said Mary Jalonick, president of The Dallas Foundation. “Our hope is that people will continue to use DonorBridge as a tool to learn about the many effective organizations addressing needs in North Texas. They’re more important now than ever.”

Dallas Giving Day came at an opportune time for many nonprofits, both because of the current economic climate and the often difficult fundraising period during the summer months.

“People focus on giving during the holidays, but you have to remember there are needs all year round,” said Leslie Clay, director of community development for Literacy Instruction for Texas (LIFT). “DonorBridge created a much-needed buzz of excitement, which not only raised awareness of nonprofits as a whole but also allowed us to receive donations we might not have received otherwise.”

Hundreds of nonprofit organizations seized the matching challenge as an opportunity to reach out to supporters.

“I was excited to invite donors to participate in this unusual match opportunity, so even the smallest donations had the chance to make a big difference,” said Larry James, president and CEO of Central Dallas Ministries. “It sparked wonderful conversations with donors about Central Dallas Ministries. It also gave us an opportunity to talk about DonorBridge and how it can help people understand who we are. We welcome the transparency that it provides.”