Houstonians Have the Power to Light Up the Holidays for Their Favorite Arts Organization With power2give.org Everyone Can Be An Arts Patron
Launched locally by Houston Arts Alliance Made possible by Founding Sponsors Bank of America and Anchorage Foundation of Texas
HOUSTON, TX. – The season to give is upon us, and Houston Arts Alliance offers lovers of the arts a gift option that can really make a difference. With the new arts funding platform power2give.org, Houstonians can make end-of-the-year donations to the art projects of their choice, as well as purchase gift cards for friends and family so they may support the arts organizations that inspire them.
Now anyone with access to the internet will be able to make donations to a myriad of arts and cultural projects across Houston’s 12-county region. Houston Arts Alliance (HAA), a nonprofit agency established by the City of Houston to advance the arts on its behalf, launched power2give.org, the brand-new-to-Houston platform, on August 9, 2012.
Houston is home to more than 500 nonprofit arts organizations, and power2give.org is the latest in a series of innovative programs and services provided by HAA for Houston’s thriving arts community. The site offers a unique way for arts and cultural organizations to post projects for funding and invite donors to contribute directly to the projects that are most intriguing to them. With tools and resources for both donors and cultural organizations, power2give.org makes posting, donating and promoting projects convenient and engaging. Power2give.org utilizes the most current technology as an addition to traditional fundraising for organizations.
“We are delighted to provide a new region-wide platform to help augment public funding and encourage individual arts philanthropy,” stated HAA CEO Jonathon Glus. “We see power2give.org as a tremendous tool to engage new donors, as well as another avenue for existing supporters, by allowing them to support very specific projects across disciplines easily.”
“Power2give holds the promise to increase exponentially the number of people who can donate to the arts – just with a click of a mouse – and to donate directly to the cultural project of their choice,” said Kim Ruth, Houston market and Texas state president, Bank of America. “Bank of America is proud to take part in making this important tool available to the Greater Houston community, which we expect will help Houston’s arts and cultural organizations take on more projects and result in their ability to create more jobs.”
“We saw Power2give.org as a way for Anchorage Foundation to make one gift that would benefit multiple organizations in finding more money for their projects,” said Anchorage Foundation of Texas Chairman Marc Melcher. “Furthermore, power2give is an HAA project that used 100% donated funds to obtain potentially $300,000 in giving to local nonprofits. Because of the social networking features on the site, we can expect this number to climb quickly.”
Current trends in philanthropy indicate an increased number of online gifts with average gift sizes between $50 – $130 and a strong desire from donors to see the direct impact of their gifts to organizations of their choice. Interestingly, recent studies have found 85-90% of arts patrons are not donors. The power2give site will foster closer relationships between donors and the organizations they support.
All 501(c) 3 nonprofit arts and cultural organizations in existence for at least one year (at the time of posting) that are located within the 12-county Greater Houston area are eligible to post projects. The Greater Houston area includes the following counties: Austin, Brazoria, Chambers, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Matagorda, Montgomery, Liberty, San Jacinto, Walker and Waller. Projects must be under $10,000, and organizations may post no more than three projects at a time. Each project will have 90 days to be funded. For more information, contact Richard Graber at 713.581.6136 or Richard@haatx.com.
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Houston Arts Alliance (HAA) is a non-profit agency established by the City of Houston to advance the arts on its behalf. HAA distributes grants to more than 220 nonprofit arts organizations and individual artists each year. In addition, HAA invests in and nurtures Houston’s thriving creative community by commissioning the work of artists for public spaces, managing the city’s civic art collection, showcasing Houston’s rich folklife traditions, cultivating business volunteers and empowering arts organizations to become sustainable and reach new audiences. For information on all events, visit HAA’s online resource at www.artshound.com. For more information on HAA, visit www.houstonartsallinace.com.
Anchorage Foundation of Texas is a private family foundation in Houston that gives primarily to the Arts, Education and Children’s/Youth services.
Bank of America’s commitment to corporate social responsibility (CSR) is a strategic part of doing business globally. Our CSR efforts guide how we operate in a socially, economically, financially and environmentally responsible way across more than 100 markets around the world, to deliver for shareholders, customers, clients and employees. Our goal is to help create economically vibrant regions and communities through lending, investing and giving. By partnering with our stakeholders, we create shared value that empowers individuals and communities to thrive and contributes to the long-term success of our business. We have several core areas of focus for our CSR, including responsible business practices; environmental sustainability; strengthening local communities with a focus on housing, hunger and jobs; investing in global leadership development; and engaging through arts and culture. Learn more at www.bankofamerica.com/opportunity and follow us on Twitter at @BofA_Community.