401Gives surpasses $5 million goal, setting records across the board for Rhode Island nonprofits – What’s Up Newp

Rhode Islanders delivered.

401Gives, the statewide day of giving powered by United Way of Rhode Island, surpassed its $5 million fundraising goal by the time giving closed at 6 p.m. Wednesday, setting new records for donors, gifts and participating organizations in the initiative’s seven-year history.

Over 36 hours, 20,112 donors made 32,544 gifts to benefit 705 Rhode Island nonprofits — each figure a new high for 401Gives, which has now raised more than $24 million since its debut in 2020.

“401Gives and the generosity shown by our Rhode Island neighbors is nothing short of extraordinary, to have pushed the bar even higher with another record-breaking year is incredible,” said Cortney Nicolato, United Way’s president and CEO. “This is significant funding for our nonprofits, dollars they didn’t have just days ago. At a time of real need, our neighbors rose to the occasion, underscoring what I’ve always known to be true… Rhode Islanders always have one another’s back.”

Giving began at 6 a.m. Tuesday, with a $20,000 matching gift from the Papitto Opportunity Connection kicking things off. The effort crossed $1 million within its first few hours. Additional matches from Rhode Island Energy, Rhode Island Foundation, Eastern Bank and CapEx helped drive sustained bursts of activity throughout the day and a half. This year’s 401Gives began a day earlier than usual to honor Passover.

Among the top fundraisers, Newport’s Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center led the large nonprofit category with $204,864 raised, followed by the Audubon Society of Rhode Island at $165,329. School One topped medium-sized organizations with $81,165, while The Gordon School led small nonprofits at $61,312 and Partnership for Providence Parks paced micro organizations at $65,949. Girl Scouts of Southeastern New England surpassed $55,000, exceeding their goal. In all, 113 organizations raised $10,000 or more and 196 exceeded $5,000.

The Alliance of Rhode Island Southeast Asians for Education engaged the highest number of individual donors at 519, followed by Foster Forward at 449 and Alliance to Mobilize Our Resistance at 312.

“From Woonsocket to Westerly and everywhere in between, nonprofits touch our lives every single day, and often in ways people don’t even realize,” said Caitlynn Douglas, who leads 401Gives for the organization. “To see the way our community rallies around 401Gives and supports organizations that are feeding families, caring for seniors, educating our children, protecting our environment, enriching the arts, and so much more is extremely powerful. We hope donors see 401Gives as the beginning of an ongoing relationship with nonprofits and more than just a day of giving.”

Rhode Island’s nonprofit sector accounts for 18 percent of the state’s total workforce. 401Gives is powered by United Way of Rhode Island and its Alliance for Nonprofit Impact.