Record-breaking $13.3 million raised through Big Day of Giving

May 7, 2021

During this year's Big Day of Giving, nonprofits in the Sacramento region raised a record-breaking $13.3 million, exceeding the $12 million raised last year and bringing the total generated since the inception of this annual giving day to more than $65 million. Over 36,500 donors gave more than 66,000 gifts as part of the community-wide effort, all increases over 2020 totals.

Read our report on Big Day of Giving 2021

“Our community once again rallied behind the organizations that make the Sacramento region healthier, stronger, and more vibrant, sending a clear message that the work of nonprofits matters. This is an incredible tribute to the power of generosity and the resilience of our community,” said Linda Beech Cutler, Chief Executive Officer of the Sacramento Region Community Foundation, which has organized the day-long giving event since its beginning in 2013.

Learn more about Big Day of Giving

She noted that, as in years past, most of the donations made through the Big Day of Giving website were under $50. Further, many area donors supplemented their donations with gifts of their time; 1,500 donors pledged over 69,000 volunteer hours to area nonprofits.

In all, nonprofits in the capital area generated $13,265,338* on May 6, and donations were received by each of the 688 nonprofits involved—the most to ever participate, Cutler noted, demonstrating this event’s importance to the recovery of the capital region’s social sector.

The five organizations that received the most total donations are:

• The Salvation Army ($345,010 from 343 donations)
• Sacramento Food Bank & Family Services ($239,639 from 1,174 donations)
• ACC Senior Services ($200,112 from 490 donations)
• Sacramento SPCA ($197,943 from 969 donations)
• Yolo Food Bank ($195,436 from 610 donations)

The amount each participating nonprofit raised in donations is available to view on the website.

Gifts made during Big Day of Giving will fund diverse causes throughout the region. For example, Lavender Library will upgrade its headquarters, an important queer community space, with the $11,700 its donors contributed; Friends of the Sacramento Public Library will use the $103,000 in gifts it received to provide books to thousands of local first graders; and the $51,900 donated to CCHAT Center will provide a full year of listening and spoken language services for five children who are deaf or hard of hearing.

Along with helping nonprofits raise much-needed funds, the Foundation offers a robust training program to build the capacity of participating nonprofits in areas such as donor engagement, board development, collaboration, marketing outreach, and storytelling prior to Big Day of Giving. Helping area nonprofits build skills like these is a key goal of the Foundation’s initiative to strengthen the nonprofit sector, Expanding Philanthropy and the Social Economy.

To learn more about Big Day of Giving, please visit www.bigdayofgiving.org, and follow its pages on Facebook and Twitter. Additionally, please mark your calendars for next year’s Big Day of Giving on Thursday, May 5, 2022.
 

THANK YOU!

This year's Big Day of Giving was made possible with lead sponsorship by Western Health Advantage, in addition to the generosity of its other community partners.

* Final numbers subject to verification due to credit card reconciliation and match allocations.