Community Foundation of Sarasota County Brings Businesses Two Ways to Be Part of the 2022 Giving Challenge

Businesses have two easy options to choose from to demonstrate their corporate values and community commitments this spring.

SARASOTA, FL – The Community Foundation of Sarasota County is offering two new, easy opportunities for local businesses to meaningfully take part in the 2022 Giving Challenge, an online giving event happening noon to noon, April 26 and 27 that has raised more than $59 million from individuals over the last 10 years.

In addition to yearlong support of causes businesses give time and resources to in Sarasota, Manatee, Charlotte, and DeSoto counties, small business owners and corporations alike now have an official opportunity to have their giving spirits recognized during the 24-hour challenge. Businesses can either recognize the collective giving of their staff as a group, or offer a donation match or challenge for one or more of the 700 nonprofit organizations that will take part in the 2022 Giving Challenge.

This year’s Giving Challenge provides two such opportunities: becoming a business fundraiser or creating a donation match or challenge. As a business fundraiser, businesses with team members who support numerous causes can register at no cost to show their collective giving across the community. Or, if there is a specific cause a company is committed to, that company can rally its team and customers to take part in a challenge grant or matching donation on behalf of a nonprofit organization. The deadline to register for either option is 5:00 pm April 12, 2022, although early registration is recommended.

“Each opportunity is simple, efficient, and entertaining for a company of any size to give together while helping local cause-driven nonprofit organizations,” says Jay Young, Vice President of Philanthropy. “Being a part of this year’s Giving Challenge also encourages businesses to demonstrate their generous spirit in new ways that reflect their longtime commitment to giving back in our community. With unlimited possibilities and creative campaigns that will help so many nonprofits, there’s no better time for business owners and leaders to show how they are part of our community’s culture of philanthropy.”

Of the two opportunities, business fundraisers are the most streamlined as individual employee gifts made to the nonprofit causes of their choice are tracked through a dedicated link and then recognized as part of a company’s cumulative giving total.

Creating a donation match or challenge allows businesses to pre-select a nonprofit – or several nonprofits – to encourage their staff and the larger community to support during the Giving Challenge. The difference between a match and challenge lies in incentives: a match amplifies the amount raised by individual donors (for example, providing a dollar-for-dollar match up to $3,000), while a challenge unlocks a gift amount by meeting a certain goal (for example, $500 provided once the organization raises $500). Both match and challenge options are customizable based on the needs of the participating business.

To learn more about business engagements and to register for free to take part, visit https://www.givingchallenge.org/info/business-engagement-opportunities.

The 2022 Giving Challenge is presented by the Community Foundation of Sarasota County, with giving strengthened by The Patterson Foundation. Support for the Giving Challenge also comes from Manatee Community Foundation, Charlotte Community Foundation, and the William G. and Marie Selby Foundation. Since its inception in 2012, the Giving Challenge has raised more than $59 million in unrestricted funds for hundreds of nonprofit organizations thanks to the generosity of local individuals, families, and businesses.

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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.