RtR Community,

We have great news! Out of 397 applicants, and only 102 open slots, RtR was selected to be part of Willamette Week's Give!Guide for the next three years. Woohoo!

What's Give!Guide?

It's Willamette Week’s annual effort to raise funds for — and draw attention to — the good works of local nonprofits. It's also Oregon's biggest fundraising campaign! G!G has raised more than $73 million for hundreds of local nonprofits since its inception in 2004. Last year’s campaign raised $8,870,380 for 250 local nonprofits from 16,336 donors. The grassroots campaign is supported by numerous local businesses, provides healthy incentives to donors, and emphasizes giving by younger folks to build a culture of engagement. G!G is Portland metro's easiest path to end-of-year giving. The campaign begins on November 1 and closes at midnight December 31.

For organizations like RtR, end of year giving is crucial as a significant portion of a year's donations, happen in the final three months. So, being a part of Give!Guide is like the exclamation mark on the sentence, "Let's go!"

This would be a big deal any year, but it's particularly important right now as funding for social justice non-profits is under serious threat from the Trump administration. Individual donations increase general operating funds, which are particularly valuable because they give organizations flexibility to adapt to changing circumstances.

What are the Give!Guide's BIG GIVE DAYS?

Each and every time someone makes a donation on a BGD, they're automatically entered into a raffle to win a great incentive prize provided by G!G. The winner is randomly drawn the next morning. 

Example: If a donor gives to 3 orgs in 1 transaction, they'll have 3 entries. Why? Because they made 3 donations. 

Do you want to game the system? Break your donation into multiple transactions. Instead of giving $100 in 1 transaction, make 10 transactions, each time for $10. It's still $100 total, but now you'll have 10 entries. 

There's over 12 Big Give Days this giving season. We will be sending reminders, so expect 1-2 more emails per week than usual. The first BGD is happening on Nov 1. Donate $10 or more to any org for three chances to win a six-month coffee subscription from Nossa Familia. Donors 35 and under have a fourth chance to win! If you're going to donate, do so on the Big Give Days!

What's the 35 & Under Challenge?

One goal of Willamette Week’s Give!Guide is to encourage giving by donors who are 35 & under to build a culture of active citizenship, and to create a more compassionate and connected community. The nonprofit with the most unique donors, aged 35 & under, in their nonprofit category wins a $1,000 cash prize! With our partnerships with youth orgs like YEC, a long list of professionals in education, and people like yourself, we believe we can spark the youth, and win this challenge! RtR is 1 of 25 non-profits in the Civil & Human Rights category.

35 & Under Challenge Pro Tip: Every donation of $10 or more counts as a vote. If you plan on donating $100 to RtR, split it up into ten transactions of $10. That'll give us 10 votes towards winning the 35 & Under Challenge, and if you do it on a BGD, that'll also give you 10 entries to win that week's incentive.

The Give!Guide campaign begins November 1! Thank you for supporting the work of Respond to Racism.

We want to give the warmest thank you to our non-profit partners, Friends of Tryon Creek and the Portland Street Art Alliance. We would also like to thank our business partners, Davidson & Watson Financial, Cultural Blends and White Rabbit Books & Gifts

All donors with a combined $50 or more will be invited to an exclusive open house with refreshments provided at White Rabbit Books & Gifts!

In solidarity, 

Troy