Nonprofits: Jump to the Application FAQ.

Why donate through Santa Cruz Gives?

Your dollars stay local. Dollars spent locally strengthen our county’s economy exponentially.
The organizations receive matching funds, so your donations are increased. The total pool of matching funds is on the home page of the website. See more details below.
No salaries, rent or overhead is paid to Santa Cruz Gives’ operations with donations.
Learn about many local nonprofits in one place. Local nonprofits have few dollars to promote themselves, and once you find out about one, researching each one individually is time-consuming.
An experienced committee vets the applicants. Our members have a depth of knowledge about nonprofits in the County. We will continue to accept more organizations as the campaign grows.
You’re part of a community. See your donation tick up in real-time and track the progress of your favorite nonprofits — it’s inspiring!
It’s easy. The shopping cart makes it easy to give and the minimum donation is only $5.
Donate to one or more organizations, and give different amounts to each organization, as you wish.

When does the campaign start and end?

Santa Cruz Gives will debut the 2024 slate of nonprofits and begin accepting donations on November 20, 2024, and end at midnight Dec. 31, 2024.

Is there a minimum donation?

The minimum donation is $5 per organization.

How do I donate?

The best way to donate is here, on the website at SantaCruzGives.org. The website accepts most major credit cards and e-checks.

Can I mail a check?

Yes. Mail checks payable to Santa Cruz Gives to:

The Volunteer Center
Attention: Santa Cruz Gives
1740 17th Ave, Santa Cruz, CA 95062.

Specify which organization(s) you are donating to. For multiple organizations, please combine the total in one check and include a list of the individual amounts for each organization. Include your address, phone, and email address.

Can I donate cash?

Yes. Cash donations can be made at the Volunteer Center office in Santa Cruz during limited hours (see below). You may also donate cash to a participating nonprofit directly. Each nonprofit can accept cash donations for its organization on behalf of Santa Cruz Gives.

If making a cash donation, be sure to include a memo detailing:
-Name of the organization(s) you are donating to
-Donor name(s)
-Donor phone number and email address.

Bring your cash or check donations to:
The Volunteer Center
1740 17th Ave., Santa Cruz, CA 95062

Cash drop-off hours
Do not leave cash in the dropbox!

Cash donations may be dropped off on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays between 1-3 p.m. as follows:
Nov. 25-29 (Closed Nov. 27-28 – checks may be dropped in the dropbox).
Dec 2 – 23 (Closed Dec. 24 – Jan. 1) – checks may be dropped in the dropbox).
Jan. 2-5, 2024 – Checks dated 12/3124 or earlier may be mailed or delivered – all donations must be received by Jan 5th! Donations received after this date will be returned.

CHECKS ARE POSTED LATE DURING THE HOLIDAYS.

The Volunteer Center offices will be closed Dec. 24 – Jan. 1. Checks and cash donations received during this time will be included in the campaign, but they will not be posted to the website until Jan. 15 or later. The Santa Cruz Gives home page will display the final numbers in late January after all checks have been processed.

Can I donate stock?

Yes. Santa Cruz Gives can accept gifts of stock, bonds, or other current financial instruments. If you are interested in making such a gift, please contact Leslie Lee (engagement@scvolunteercenter.org) to make arrangements. The proceeds from the sales of such gifts will be disbursed to the Santa Cruz Gives organization(s) of your choice and are tax-deductible as allowed by law.

Can I make a donation on someone else’s behalf?

Yes. The person named can be recognized via an email that is automatically generated. At checkout, there will be an option to indicate whether you’d like your gift to be in honor or in memory of someone, or neither.

Are donations tax deductible?

Yes. Donors will receive an email receipt immediately after making an online donation that will include a tax ID number. Donors sending checks or making gifts of stock will receive a receipt by mail. Please note – you will receive a receipt from our fiscal sponsor, the Volunteer Center of Santa Cruz County.

Can I donate anonymously?

Yes. You will be able to specify that you would like to remain anonymous when you submit your donation. Nonprofit organizations will not receive the name of an anonymous donor, nor are donations made public.

In the shopping cart, there is an option to “add to the overall matching funds.” What does that mean?

Matching funds is a pool of funds distributed to the participating organizations. Any donor may add to the matching funds by entering an amount in the Matching Funds field on the shopping cart. The funds are distributed proportionally. This means that the total of the matching funds will be divided and granted based on the same percentage of the total overall donations that each organization receives during the campaign. That is, if a nonprofit receives 3% of the total donated funds (individual + challenge grant donations), they will receive 3% of the matching funds. The running total of the matching fund is on the Home Page.

How are matching funds applied?

The overall match is proportionate. Total matching funds are divided and granted based on the percentage of the total donations that each organization receives during the campaign. That is, if a nonprofit receives 3 percent of the total donated funds (challenge grants + individual donations), it will receive 3 percent of the matching funds. Total matching funds are posted on the home page. All donors can now contribute, so they may increase during the campaign (see details below for how to contribute).

Who handles the money from donations?

The Volunteer Center of Santa Cruz County is the fiscal sponsor of Santa Cruz Gives. All donations are deposited directly into a bank account managed by The Volunteer Center of Santa Cruz County. Donations will be dispersed to the individual nonprofit organizations in February.

CHALLENGE GRANTS

What is a challenge grant?

A Challenge Grant is an up-front grant to the nonprofit made by a major donor. These grants demonstrate support for a nonprofit, generally from philanthropists experienced at vetting organizations for effectiveness, thereby encouraging other donors to give by setting a goal for donors to match. A “thermometer” tracks progress toward the goal on the nonprofit’s profile page on this site, and challenge grantors are recognized by name if desired.

Can an individual or company make a challenge grant?

Yes. They must be a minimum of $500 and made by November 7, prior to the official launch of the campaign. If you are interested in making a challenge grant to one or more participating nonprofits, contact info@santacruzgives.org in October of any given year for details.

What are the three awards?

The nonprofits are eligible for three special awards to encourage participation:

$1,000             Most Donors
$1,000             Project of the Year
$1,000             Most Creative Campaign

APPLICATION FAQ FOR NONPROFITS

What is the application process?

Nonprofits with current 501(c)3 status in good standing (or have a qualified fiscal sponsor) AND who have a project benefitting Santa Cruz County are invited to apply to participate in Santa Cruz Gives:

Here are the steps:

Review this FAQ in detail. If you have questions not answered here, contact info@santacruzgives.org.
Submit applications by the deadline – September 6, 2024.
Propose a project benefitting Santa Cruz County.

Selected nonprofits are notified around of September 25-27, each year.

How are organizations selected?

The Santa Cruz Gives committee selects from the eligible organizations that:

submit applications by the , deadline – September 6, 2024;
are a nonprofit with current (nonprofits must be a 501(c)3 status;
propose a project benefitting Santa Cruz County.

The selection committee attempts to choose projects that:

cover as many of the categories of community needs as possible (education, youth, seniors, food/nutrition, education, the environment, the arts, animals, etc.).
represent diverse and innovative projects within the categories (we avoid selecting similar projects).
benefit the county’s various geographical communities.
present a clear and specific project.
present a compelling appeal to donors.
demonstrate potential for success: organization’s successfully leverage their own communication channels (email, social media, network of supporters, etc.).

Unfortunately, not all qualifying organizations that apply can be selected. Participation is limited in order to ensure a successful campaign for all.

Do you have any advice to help my nonprofit’s application stand out?

Yes!
The best advice we can offer is to look at the leaderboard on SantaCruzGives.org – identify the previous year’s successful nonprofits (look at total number of donors as well as total funds) – review individual nonprofit pages to get a sense of what the public responded to.

In addition, you’ll want to be sure you have:

An inspiring mission statement
A compelling Big Idea
A clear and concise description of your work
Willingness to engage your own donors and direct fundraising to Santa Cruz Gives – and if you’ve participated in Gives before, this was evident in your own campaign efforts.

WHO CAN I CONTACT IF I HAVE ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS?

Please email info@SantaCruzGives.org for further information.