By Michelle Griffith, St. Paul Pioneer Press

 

When a child has a heart disease, it affects the whole family.

Camp Odayin, a Minnesota nonprofit organization that supports children with heart disease, receives a large chunk of donations on one particular day each year — Give to the Max Day. The organization has an annual operating budget of about $1 million.

GiveMN.org’s annual Give to the Max Day — Thursday — aims to connect individual donors online with thousands of Minnesota nonprofits each year.

Last year’s 10th anniversary Give to the Max Day raised more than $21 million from 70,000 donors for nonprofits statewide. This year, organizers hope the momentum built from last year’s record donation day will continue.

“Our goal is for thousands of donors to support thousands of organizations with millions of dollars of generosity. That’s our goal each and every year,” said Jake Blumberg, executive director of GiveMN.org.

Although Give to the Max Day is considered a “statewide holiday” colloquially, donations are accepted year-round.

An early giving period is currently open for individuals to donate funds to a nonprofit of their choice.

As an incentive for donors, the organization will add a $500 stipend to a random individual’s donation every 15 minutes.

Approximately 5 to 7 percent of donors say their Give to the Max Day donation was their first charitable donation they have ever made, Blumberg said, based on donor survey results.

Most donors give an average of less than $140 per contribution, which is an indicator of how many Minnesotans donate each Give to the Max Day, Blumberg added.

For smaller nonprofits, like Camp Odayin, the organizations use their donations to have a stronger presence and serve more individuals.

For example, Camp Odayin charges campers $25 per session, but it actually costs the organization about $900 per camping session. The donations cover the rest of the expense for families, many of whom pay expensive medical bills, said Camp Odayin executive director Sara Meslow.

Last year, Ramsey County donors gave the most money collectively to Second Harvest Heartland, with the organization receiving about $640,000 in donations, which includes financial matches from certain groups and individuals.

The donations from Give to the Max Day helped the nonprofit continue its mission of making sure everyone within the state and surrounding areas has access to fresh, nutritious food.

“The donations from the community help us to make sure that we can receive and distribute those sources of food,” said Heather Olson, the director of corporate partnership at Second Harvest Heartland.

Blumberg said he thinks this event has gained such popularity in Minnesota because many people within the state are civic-minded.

“They are incredibly excited to participate in something with other Minnesotans and to support causes that make our community stronger,” he said.