By Dianne Anderson

Eloise Parker’s new nonprofit only raised about $350 this year through her Long Beach Gives platform webpage, but she said it might as well have been over a million.

Her first time experience with the fundraiser allowed her to get some extra money to support the homeless, but the many new contacts and training she received will help her program grow.

Her grassroots nonprofit hits the streets to reach the homeless with care packages and blankets. Each year, they also host their annual holiday event reaching hundreds with the help of their 20 volunteers.

Through Long Beach Gives, she applied and was accepted to benefit from their donor platform. She also participated in live events to learn how to write and build a grant.

“It was very informative, I’m learning more about demographics and fundraising, and different organizations available to help. It was very uplifting in helping me understand how to build my nonprofit,” she said.

For almost a decade, her organization has been doing homeless community work, but it’s only their third year 501c3 certified. She also received $5,000 from the Mayor’s Fund, but until recently, she said they survived off donations from coworkers, out of pocket, friends and family.

“This is my first year reaching out to platforms like Long Beach Gives and the Mayor’s Fund, and in-kind organizations. It was very welcoming and also a learning process to not just limit myself, but to reach out to different platforms to help us raise funds,” she said.

Overall, she sees a growing need for basic necessities in the community, for socks, food, and nonperishables, as well as tents and blankets for the homeless. It is also a reminder of how far she has come.

She remembers making a pact with God to get her out of homelessness, and she would return the favor.

“It’s every corner you turn down, it’s like an epidemic, you see someone in need. Right now, people need foremost to know they’re loved, not forgotten. Just to see a smile on their face with the items they receive from us is a blessing in and of itself,” she said.

This year, city givers reached deep in their pockets to help nonprofits, even though putting food on the table and gas in the car wasn’t easy.

Long Beach Gives Campaign Manager, Matt Guardabascio, said the level of community support from people who live and work in the city is a powerful statement of how much they appreciate nonprofits. This year, over $2 million was raised to serve 244 nonprofits.

“Long Beach is a special place,” he said. “To see people giving when gas was literally at $6 a gallon during our campaign and we were still able to raise a record amount of support from the people who live in the city.”

Long Beach Gives is not a grant-maker, but donors decide where they want their dollars through the platform. Big donors that want to give, for example, $10,000, contact their nonprofit of choice. The nonprofit inputs the dollar amount into the platform, and their webpage reflects their matching gift in real time as total dollars raised.

Nonprofits can secure the funds, and also matching dollars with no strings attached or application fees. However, a 6.5% fee is applied to transactions to cover hosting, posting and credit card processing.

Guardabascio said they help nonprofits identify clear goals, and get on solid footing with the right tools. Over time, they learn to market more effectively, raise awareness of their programs, and produce clean looking marketing materials in a fraction of the time.

“You know how to ask for money and you’re getting more and more comfortable asking people to support the work you’re doing, which for a lot of people is really tough,” he said

Of the 244 nonprofits, 50 are new this year. Most of the funds raised came directly from the community.

For those who want to get on the Long Beach Gives platform, applications open early to mid-March of next year. Year round, their sponsor The Nonprofit Partnership (TNP) also reaches nonprofits out in the community with affordable member programs for access to tools and resources.

“It’s helping nonprofits to strengthen their ability to be sustainable as COVID-related funding streams dry up. There’s still that same need, those dollars allowed a lot of nonprofits to expand services to meet the increased need during COVID,” he said.

Through TNP, the fiscal sponsor of Long Beach Gives, nonprofits can access training and education, work on professional development, capacity building, and meet experts and consultants.

“They run incredible trainings and workshops for free for over 200 [nonprofits] every year. It’s awesome to be part of that,” he said. “We’re partnering to provide discounted pricing for Meet the Funders to get them in the room with foundations that fund projects [both] in, and outside of Long Beach.”

For Long Beach Gives, see

https://www.longbeachgives.org/

To support GP Care Packages and Blankets of Love, see https://gpcarepackages.org/

For The Nonprofit Partnership, see https://tnpsocal.org/

To learn more about the Mayors Fund, see http://mayorsfundfored.org/