Colorado Gives Day 2015 Raises $28.4 Million

ARVADA, Colo. (December 9, 2015) – Colorado donors opened their hearts again and donated $28.4 million to 1,884 nonprofits in just 24 hours on Colorado Gives Day. This record-breaking amount surpasses last year’s $26.2 million total.

A record number of 123,999 donations have been recorded, a jump from last year’s total of 107,862. Donations range from $10 to $1 million.

Colorado Gives Day is a statewide celebration to increase online giving. Presented by Community First Foundation and FirstBank, Colorado Gives Day is powered by ColoradoGives.org, a year-round, online giving website featuring nearly 1,900 nonprofits.

Colorado Gives Day is one the most successful events of its kind in the nation. Since its inception in 2010, the event has raised more than $111 million for Colorado nonprofits.

The first gift of the day was made to Red Ribbon Project at 12:00 a.m. on December 8. The last gift to Golden Retriever Freedom Rescue came in at 11:59 p.m. Community First Foundation continues its work to record donations and reconcile gifts. The final Colorado Gives Day numbers will be announced on ColoradoGives.org by the end of the month.

“Colorado Gives Day has changed the landscape of giving in Colorado and is the ultimate feel-good giving experience,” said Marla J. Williams, president and CEO, Community First Foundation. “We are delighted by this outpouring of generosity and thank each and every donor for supporting Colorado nonprofits and the great work they do to make our lives better. These numbers show that Coloradans value the many ways these organizations enrich our lives.”

“For each of the last six years, Coloradoans have come together to make Colorado Gives Day an overwhelming success, and today we celebrate yet another record-breaking year,” said John Ikard, CEO of FirstBank Holding Company. “We believe that investing in the community is not only the right thing to do, but also good business, and we’re proud to serve as the corporate sponsor for a movement that supports more than 1,900 nonprofit organizations statewide.”

FirstBank Sponsorship Boosts Nonprofits
FirstBank donated $600,000 in total to this year’s program, which includes $100,000 in cash prizes and $500,000 that was matched by Community First Foundation to create a $1 Million Incentive Fund. The $1 Million Incentive Fund was created to motivate donors to give on Colorado Gives Day and is one of the largest giving-day incentive funds in the country. This fund proportionally increases the value of every dollar donated. For example, if a nonprofit organization received 10 percent of the total money made on Colorado Gives Day, that same nonprofit will receive 10 percent of the $1 Million Incentive Fund.

First Bank cash prizes added to the excitement of this year’s Colorado Gives Day. A recent “Why I Give” social media drawing awarded $15,000 to 15 nonprofits. In addition, five nonprofits each received a $1,000 cash prize through a random drawing held at the Colorado Gives Day Rally at the Capitol on December 7, 2015. Sixteen organizations will win a $5,000 cash prize through a post-Colorado Gives Day random drawing. To be eligible, first-time nonprofits must have received a minimum of 30 donations via ColoradoGives.org and returning nonprofits must have had an increase in dollars raised over last year’s Colorado Gives Day. Prize winners will be announced in January.

Generous Media Sponsors
Colorado Gives Day would not be a success without the help of our media sponsors who generously donated space and air time to promote online giving. They include:

• The Networks of 9NEWS
• Univision
• Comcast
• Denver Business Journal
• Rocky Mountain PBS
• Colorado Public Television (CPT12, PBS)
• iHeartMedia
• Mile High Outdoor Advertising
• 5280 Magazine

About FirstBank
FirstBank operates more than 120 locations in Colorado, Arizona and California. FirstBank is the largest locally owned banking organization in Colorado, serving more than 650,000 customers. Since 2000, FirstBank has contributed more than $45 million and thousands of volunteer hours to charitable organizations. FirstBank is unique in that a majority of its stock is owned by management and employees. For more information, visit efirstbank.com.

About Community First Foundation
Since 1975, Community First Foundation has been helping generous donors and innovative nonprofits come together to improve the quality of life and create positive change in Jefferson County, the Denver metropolitan area and beyond. We serve as a connector, partner, collaborator and resource to fuel the power of community for the greater good. We are proud to use our energy, leadership and trusted stewardship of financial resources to energize giving across our state, strengthen nonprofits, support donors and find new ways to address community needs. For more information, visit CommunityFirstFoundation.org.