10th annual Give DeKalb County Fundraiser on Thursday

SYCAMORE – Give DeKalb County, a countywide fundraising event that has raised $6.8 million in nine years for area nonprofits, will hold its 10th annual 24-hour giving day on Thursday benefiting almost 145 local organizations.

On Thursday, individuals will be able to submit donations to any of the 144 nonprofit organizations or funds participating in the 2023 Give DeKalb County Fundraiser through the organization’s website. Those interested can donate a multitude of ways, including via mail, online or in-person donations. Mail-in donations kicked off April 20.

Give DeKalb County committee member Micki Chulick – also a former member of the DeKalb County Community Foundation Board of Directors – has championed the fundraiser since it was started in 2014.

“I’d like to think it’s kind of the thing to do. You know the energy is really building, social media has gone crazy, and rightfully so,” Chulick, of DeKalb, said. “I mean, this is a chance for organizations to give up the spaghetti dinners, the pie auctions that require a lot of work for very little return. This is 24 hours, and some agencies raise a lot of money.”

“And we’re in awe of that type of reach but also so grateful that right here at home, right here in DeKalb County we have such generous donors who support these organizations and their incredible work.”

—  Ben Bingle, director of the DeKalb County Nonprofit Partnership

In order to participate, organizations must be members of the DeKalb County Nonprofit Partnership, 501 (c) 3 nonprofit organizations registered with the Internal Revenue Service and the state of Illinois and be located in or serving residents within DeKalb County.

The DeKalb County Nonprofit Partnership works directly with the DeKalb County Community Foundation to run the 24-hour fundraiser. Ben Bingle, the director of DeKalb County Nonprofit Partnership, said he thinks the fundraiser has seen “incredible results” over the past nine years.

“We’re very fortunate to have such a giving community in DeKalb County and it’s remarkable to kind of step back and look at some of the numbers,” Bingle said.

In 2015, Chulick said the fundraiser had a goal of receiving $100,000 worth of donations in 2015, but within a few years the expectations became greater.

In 2014, the DeKalb County History Center – then known as the Sycamore History Museum – raised $500. The Barb Food Mart raised $1,700, Opportunity House raised $2,475 and the Egyptian Theatre brought in $1,705. In 2022, after nine years of Give DeKalb County, all of those organizations have since received tens of thousands of dollars in donations through the fundraiser.

The sixth annual event raised more than $749,000 in 2019, $1.1 million in 2020 and in 2022 – last year – more than $1.5 million was raised through 7,626 individual donations from donors living in all 50 states.

“So while this is very focused on DeKalb County and supporting the nonprofit sector here, I think that shows you the reach, and the size and the scope, that these organizations have,” Bingle said. “And we’re in awe of that type of reach but also so grateful that right here at home, right here in DeKalb County we have such generous donors who support these organizations and their incredible work.”

Noah Nordbrock, donor services and marketing director with DeKalb County Community Foundation, said the first Thursday of May – when Give DeKalb County is traditionally held – is like a holiday for the nonprofit organizations and the donors supporting them.

“It’s kind of like the Christmas of DeKalb County. Where it’s like the day of there’s all this build up, anticipation of the day, and when the day finally gets here, it’s – just seeing the amount of generosity come through,” Nordbrock said. “One example: Micki Chulick always comes to mind because she’s probably one of the largest advocates for the giving day, but she gets so excited as a donor.”

While donations can submitted online, there will be a donation drop-off event at the DeKalb County Community Foundation building at 475 DeKalb Avenue in Sycamore from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Thursday.

“That’s more for people who want to come in, say hello, maybe have a cup of coffee and drop off their donation, and watch the results on our big screen and kind of see that generosity in action,” Bingle said.

How much the money is raised won’t be official for a few weeks after the event, but the fundraiser is also including a mail-in option. Donations postmarked to the organization on or before May 4 will given the same benefits as donations place in-person or online.

Among those benefits is a bonus pool. Bingle said, if an organization raises 2% of the total raised during the Give DeKalb County event then the organization is given 2% of the bonus pool.

It’s a way to introduce friendly competition among organizations, but it also serves to show donors that giving a dollar during the fundraiser goes a little bit further than it normally would, Bingle said.

As of Tuesday, more than $190,000 had been placed in the bonus pool, the largest the bonus pool has ever been, Bingle said.

Chulick said she is so certain the 10th annual Give DeKalb County fundraiser will be a success that she wanted preemptively to thank every donor and organization that plans to be involved.

“Give DeKalb County is one of my favorite days of the year and it’s inspiring to me to see all the donors, and the people that come out, and the energy that surrounds it with the signs, and the media and etcetera,” Chulick said. “And having worked in social services all my life ... it validates the work of our social services agencies and how important it really is to the quality of life that we enjoy here in DeKalb County.”

Ways to Give

• By mail: Participants donating in person can print a donation form, complete the form indicating the organizations and donation amounts, and write a check payable to “DCCF” by May 4. Donation forms can be found at www.dcnp.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/GDC-Mail-in-Donation-Form-2023.pdf. To mail a donation, write to the DeKalb County Community Foundation, 475 DeKalb Ave., Sycamore.
• Online: Donations can be made online by credit card, debit card, ACH transfer, or mobile wallet from midnight Wednesday, May 3 to to midnight Thursday, May 4. The minimum amount for online donations is $5. To donate online or see a list of participating nonprofits, visit GiveDeKalbCounty.org.
• By ACH: Make a donation directly from your bank account using Plaid with a donation minimum of $100. Learn more by viewing this article.
• By Mobile Wallet: Donate using Apple Pay, Google Pay, or Microsoft Pay if they are enabled on your device.
• In-person Donation Drop Off: 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Thursday, May 4. Bring donation form and donation to the DeKalb County Community Foundation building, 475 DeKalb Avenue, Sycamore. Drop off your donation, watch the leaderboard on the big screen, and enjoy light refreshments.

For information, visit GiveDeKalbCounty.org.