How Can You Make The Most Of Your Giving In 2017?

by Rick · January 10, 2017

Rachel Calderon

By Rachel Calderon

It is tradition at the start of each year to reflect on the last year and to make big plans and goals for the new year ahead. We often times pursue things like exercising, saving money, furthering our education, eating more vegetables, traveling, and other things that help us become better versions of ourselves.

This year consider expanding your list of resolutions to give on purpose and make the greatest impact on the community through your giving. We know that the best way to measure success in our finances is by return on investment. Shouldn’t your giving be held to the same standard?

To help you work towards this resolution, Central Florida Foundation provides an online tool to help you called Nonprofit Search (cffound.org/nonprofit_search). It’s free and available for anyone to use, no username or password required. Nonprofit Search helps you easily find nonprofits in Central Florida that you want to learn more about in order to make your gifts more meaningful.

Nonprofits put their own information into what we call a portrait and our staff reviews it. Each portrait gives you the opportunity to read about the impact local nonprofits make in our community every day. You can also read about their big goals for the future, plans to achieve those goals, a listing of board members, an outline of who is on the management team, and three years of financial history. (If you are looking to learn more about a nonprofit that is not based in our local community, visit guidestar.org).

The point of having all of this information about a nonprofit at your fingertips is to help you see a snapshot of what is happening in our community, how our community works together to solve issues and how your gift can help a nonprofit take their work to the next level.

Keep in mind, too, that beyond giving money, you can find opportunities to volunteer and use your skills and talents to help out. If you have been asked to serve on a local board of directors, check the organization out in Nonprofit Search first to become familiar with their work.

This year, I encourage you to do your research and take the opportunity ahead of you to make the most out of your giving.