Giveback Giveaway Stories

December 7, 2009

Giveback Giveaway Stories

At The Triangle Community Foundation's Annual Holiday Party, guests enjoyed food, drink, and entertainment at the Marbles Kids Museum in Raleigh. The festive night ended with a surprise involving envelops with $10 cash and a challenge introduced by Executive Director, Andrea Bazán. The Give Back Giveaway has three rules, 1) match the $10 with at least $10 of your own 2) go out and give the money to someone you do not know or an organization doing good in the region and 3) tell us what you did on Triangle Gives Back's Facebook page!

Check out some of the stories below:

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Carol Walborn, Executive Director Community Music School, and Her Husband Started a New Tradition with their $10

This is what my husband and I are doing with our two, $10 bills. Each year, on December 23, we host a holiday party in our home for about 50 friends and family members. This year we will start a new tradition for our party with the TGB funds. We will ask all in attendance to participate in our Giving Tree. Brightly decorated envelopes will be available for each person to match the $10 TGB gift and hang it on our Christmas tree. This year, the funds will go to Family House in Chapel Hill, a residence for out-of-area families to stay when accompanying a family member for treatment at UNC Hospital. Each year we will choose another charity we know nothing about.

Marna Doucette and Steve Quessy Found a Way to "do good twice"

We used the $10 seed money from TCF and our matching gift to purchase fresh produce at the Carrboro Farmers’ Market and then contribute the produce to the Market’s Farmer FoodShare Fresh Food for the Holidays food drive. Produce donated to the FoodShare program by Farmers’ Market patrons and farmers is distributed to the hungry via the InterFaith Council for Social Services and the Inter-Faith Food Shuttle and also delivered directly to the Maley Estates senior center and St. Joseph’s Bread Ministries. It’s a wonderful opportunity to “do good” twice – by providing fresh produce to the hungry and supporting our local farmers in the process.

Alice Lutz, CEO of Triangle Family Services gave to the Beehive Collection

Working in and with a new organization affords a unique perspective on the many and varied needs not only within our agency but within our community. Triangle Family services is a 72 year old agency that provides a comprehensive set of programs for individuals and families including financial security; family safety and providing for mental health needs. While I financially support our organization the intent as I understand of the $10.00 match to support a new organization. My contribution/match went to pollinate philanthropy and embrace your true spirit of the gift by supporting The Beehive Collection. This is a unique giving initiative that not only supports agency programs in our community but mentors young professionals (primarily woman) in embracing Philanthropy- a win win for all. Thank you for this unique gift of encouragement to share.

Barbara Leedy Turned $10 into $40 and Gave to an At-Risk High School Class

Thanks so much for the great idea of matching fund donations to a local cause. I highly recommend www.donorschoose.com where teachers post request for funding for school projects. You can select projects by county which allows you to target your funding. Best part of using donors choose is that many of the teacher requests have matching dollars from the Gates or Burroughs Welcome Fund. Chuck and I took a few envelopes and we matched the funds and then those funds were matched by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation so every $10 donation by TCF became a $40 donation to a school project! We chose to fund a request by a science teacher at an at risk HS for 4 different science games for her Earth Science Class. Thanks to the matching funds, we were able to fund the entire request! Great idea.

Robin Barefoot, JD Gift Planning Advisor Triangle Community Foundation Gave Toys to Children in Need

I more than matched my $10 received at the Holiday Party & purchased two baby dolls, two puzzles, a set of ‘cars’ and a Black & Decker ‘tool’ kit and delivered these to an open house benefiting Capital City Clauses – a Raleigh-based 501c3 founded in 1994 which supports The Salvation Army Christmas Cheer Program. Thanks for making the holiday season brighter for Triangle children!

Brian O. Beverly Gave to the Beta Phi Chapter of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity

I matched the $10 and gave the money to Beta Phi Chapter of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. in Durham, North Carolina. Beta Phi Chapter spearheads a number of social action initiatives in the Durham community, including adopting families for Christmas through Durham Social Services. The money will go to purchase gifts for the adopted families this year.

Laura Treat Harvey Director of Development at the Emily Krzyzewski Center Gave 32 Pounds of Food

The evening after the TCF party at Marbles, I was agonizing about how to best use the $10 -- for example, should I get lots of other friends to match it with me and create a much larger circle of givers with a bigger impact? The plan sounded good, but I realized my regular job as a fundraiser would not allow me to put in the time to follow up with another project, so I decided to keep it simple. Since the TCF party itself was a contribution point for the Food Bank, I decided I'd put the TCF's and my $10 together and buy food for the Food Bank in Durham. I sent my best bargain shopper (that is, my partner, Regina, who truly knows how to stretch a dollar!) out to Aldi's in Raleigh where you can buy a lot of food for $20. She came back with 32 pounds of items that are on the Food Bank's "needed items" list. We delivered it on Friday 12/11.

Thanks for giving us the opportunity to give to a worthy cause. On days when I eat a bit too much in celebrating the holidays I am certainly aware of the blessings I've been given. And the times I feel hunger pangs I count my blessings that I have the resources to fulfill my needs. Your gift to us was more than just the $10 bill -- it created a powerful impetus to get out and DO something!

Alicia Altmueller Associate Director of The Center for Integrating Research and Action Helped Out, "a little bit more"

The $10 challenge came at a perfect time in my household. Even though my family had given our planned holiday donations, this allowed us to help out just a little bit more. Combining the $10 with some more money of our own, we were able to purchase additional canned goods for a food drive at our local school for families who might otherwise not have enough food through the holidays. In addition, we were able to respond to a request by a local nonprofit. My daughters and I cooked two casseroles that will be used to help feed those in need over the holidays.

John used his $10 to augment his annual gift!

"Juts a quick note about how I used the TGB holiday challenge: I matched the TGB funds with $10 and used the extra funds to augment my annual gift to a human services organization that provides employment services to low-income adults."

Maurice gave his 10$ to help combat homelessness

"While the Triangle works toward ending homelessness several congregations are making their space availabe to those who need a warm place to sleep. This gift will help! Thank You!"

Betsy MacMichael State Director of First in Families of NC gave back to The Reality Center

"Your idea was intriguing.. We matched your money with a donation to The Reality Center, a nonprofit that works with marginalized youth in Durham, including people with disabilities as well as youth “on the edge” due to income level and/or difficult life experience. They have been a wonderful resource for our own daughter Janie, offering after school recreation, tutoring, Tuesday Night Live activities, yoga class, Girls Time, and so on."

Debbie McCarthy: Executive Director of The Augustine Project: Gave in a new way to an old student

"The $10 envelopes were a WONDERFUL idea. On the way home, my husband David and I decided we would send our donations to the Durham Rescue Mission. Then lo and behold, the very next day the phone rang. It was Tyrell, the Augustine student I tutored for almost 4 years. He was a repeating 4rd grader at Ephesus Elementary in Chapel Hill when I met him in 2001, a total non-reader who had attended 5 different schools. He is now a senior at Southern High in Durham, and he can read. We have stayed in touch over time... going out to eat or to a movie every now and then.

Life for Tyrell and his five siblings has always been rough. He is the oldest child and the most responsible person in the household. Mom has a drug problem; Dad was in jail and is now deceased. They are evicted regularly because Mom doesn't pay the rent. That is what prompted the latest call. The family had been sleeping with friends or relatives and at the moment they are living in a hotel on Guess Rd. Through the years, they've also been in and out of shelters in Orange and Durham County and sometimes go to New York to stay with family there.

So, even though the rules say give the money to someone you don't know, I'm sending our TCF cash (and more) to Tyrell. I plan to include a note asking him to let me know one small gift he and each of his siblings and his mom would like for Christmas and will add them to our shopping list. At least each of them will have one wrapped present to open."

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