Amplify Austin, the annual 24-hour campaign to raise funds for hundreds of local non-profits, has announced their goal for 2016. Between 6 p.m. on March 8, 2016 and 6 p.m. on March 9, 2016, Amplify Austin is encouraging donors to give a total of $9 million to charities they believe in.
You may be rushing through your online reading today, so let me be sure you caught that number: in only 24 hours, Amplify Austin wants to raise $9 million for non-profit organizations in our city.
If this is the first you’re hearing of Amplify Austin, this may seem like an ambitious goal. But this campaign has surprised us all, year after year, ever since its inception in 2013. In 2013 and 2014, a total of $8.5 million was raised. During the last day of giving, on March 5, 2015, donors gave more than $7.7 million!
Given the overwhelming support shown for Amplify Austin, the goal for 2016 doesn’t seem unattainable, does it? Amplify Austin predicts they’ll have over 600 non-profits listed on their website, falling into eight major categories:
- Animal Care & Services
- Arts & Culture
- Basic Needs
- Education
- Environment
- Health Care
- Human Services
- Sports & Recreation
This year, Amplify Austin is partnering with creative studio, Thousand Ships, to increase awareness for the campaign. For starters, Thousand Ships produced this short video to encapsulate what Amplify Austin is all about:
Searching Amplify Austin’s site for more information about each non-profit is streamlined, allowing visitors to quickly find one they identify with. Celeste Flores, Executive Director of I Live Here, I Give Here, the organization behind Amplify Austin, says, “It only takes as little as $25 to make a huge impact when the community comes together.” Forgo a few lattes next March and you can change the lives of others.
Visit AmplifyAustin.org to discover exciting and unique non-profits that make our city better. Then mark your calendar for March 8, 2016 and get ready to give!
@theAustinot wants to know:
Have you participated in Amplify Austin before? Which non-profits did you support?
I will be there supporting Camp Fire Central Texas. They are a true youth service organization that embraces the outdoors and nature of our community to help children shape the world around them.