86 participating organizations will close the summer with more than $2.1 million raised
LIVINGSTON, Mont. -- Now in its 5th year, the Park County Community Foundation’s GIVE A HOOT Community Giving Challenge continues to inspire people to support Park County nonprofits working on the ground to improve the community. Since 2019, GIVE A HOOT has helped raise over $7.8 million from more than fifteen thousand individual donations.
GIVE A HOOT 2023 was another record-breaking year. People from across Park County and beyond donated more than $2.1 million from over 4,100 individual donations to 86 different Park County nonprofits. This sets a new record for total dollars donated by the community, the most individual donations, the largest matching pool, and the most participating nonprofits since GIVE A HOOT was launched in 2019.
“Although we are very proud of the significant growth we have seen over the last 5 years, GIVE A HOOT is about more than just dollars raised for nonprofit organizations here in Park County,” said Gavin Clark, PCCF Executive Director, “GIVE A HOOT brings to the forefront the significant impact our nonprofit sector has on people’s lives on a daily basis.”
Participating Park County nonprofits will close the summer with additional unrestricted funds they can use to address Park County’s most pressing needs. PCCF’s We Will Park County community visioning initiative revealed that county residents are most concerned about economic challenges and maintaining opportunities for community well-being. Participating GIVE A HOOT organizations will use GIVE A HOOT funds to address many of these core concerns. Examples of how these funds will impact Park County include:
The North Yellowstone Education Foundation, based in Gardiner, will further its investment into affordable teacher housing, which provides the Gardiner School with more teacher recruiting capacity – leading to robust school offerings and a more family-friendly community.
The Livingston Ice Skating Association is closer to purchasing a chiller for their winter ice rink, thereby extending the amount of time they can remain open to offer this free winter activity. Adults and kids alike will benefit from having healthy ways to spend their time during our long winters of limited recreational opportunities.
The Park County Cancer Alliance will continue to expand awareness of their work to create a caring cancer support community, including Mindful Yoga and a Cancer Support Group for people in our community who are affected by cancer. This includes everyone from the moment of their diagnosis to years after treatment is complete, as well as caregivers and families of those with cancer. In addition, they provide financial support can range from a gas card that helps someone get to their Chemotherapy or Radiation treatments to providing financial support through monetary grants/gifts currently up to $1500.
The 2023 campaign also included eleven organizations participating for the first time. Elevate Montessori School in Livingston was able to avoid having a beloved lead teacher depart for a new profession, and the Park County Motor Vehicle Park will continue to pursue their goal of creating a safe place for all ages to entertain, educate, participate and compete in a motorsports environment. Another organization new to the campaign this year, the Livingston Elks Charitable Fund, will be using their GIVE A HOOT funds to help drive repairs and renewal of Livingston’s Elks Lodge, toward the goal of making the building function for a broader range of community events. .
“These funds will enable us to support the Livingston Elks Lodge #246 with their building improvement and renewal which allows us to continue our mission of charity to our amazing community!” said Rick Mischka, Director of the Livingston Elks Charitable Fund.
The total amount raised during the 2023 GIVE A HOOT campaign reflects $1.7 million contributed by the community, and more than $427,000 in the GIVE A HOOT partial matching pool, the largest in campaign history. Funds for the matching pool were contributed by donors throughout the campaign and by the GIVE A HOOT Matching Pool supporters made in advance of the campaign thanks to the Community Closet, Deborah Erdman, Dennis and Phyllis Washington Foundation, First Interstate Bank, Fishcamp Custom, Frontline Ag Solutions, Donald B. Gimbel, glassybaby foundation, JAKET Foundation (Phill & Liz Gross), Livingston’s Ace Hardware, Harvey & Carol Massey Foundation, Opportunity Bank of Montana, Joe Phelps, Printing for Less, Diana & Bruce Rauner, Sibanye Stillwater, The Solso Family Foundation, and Willow Creek Ranch. The Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation was the 2023 rodeo sponsor.
The $427,000 partial matching pool was distributed across all of the participating GIVE A HOOT organizations. Five organizations received the $15,000 maximum match amount; an additional fourteen organizations received a partial match of $10,000; and the remaining organizations each received $0.41 cents for each dollar raised.
"Montana is home to us. GIVE A HOOT is so important to us because it impacts over 86 nonprofits across Park County. And in just one month. The glassybaby community is happy to be part of this campaign,” said matching pool supporter Lee Rhodes, Founder & CEO of glassybaby.
The GIVE A HOOT Community Giving Challenge, a program of the Park County Community Foundation, is made possible by a generous grant from sponsors the Dennis & Phyllis Washington Foundation, in conjunction with Montana Rail Link, and Willow Creek Ranch.
“The GIVE A HOOT campaign is a collaborative effort that benefits from the tireless work of our participating organizations during the month of July, and they are the true heroes of this summertime activity,” explained Barb Oldershaw, PCCF program director.
Profiles of each participating organization can be found on the campaign website: www.give-a-hoot.org.
Nonprofits located in and serving Park County interested in participating in the 2024 GIVE A HOOT campaign can reach out to Barb Oldershaw, PCCF Program Director. Note that this campaign also welcomes the participation of our neighbors in Mammoth, WY.
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About The Park County Community Foundation:
Founded by community leaders in 2005, the Park County Community Foundation seeks to work with all in Park County to connect caring people and resources with the most pressing community needs and opportunities.
We believe many of Park County’s challenges can be solved through mutual understanding, better cooperation, and a robust culture of philanthropy. To realize these goals, PCCF is committed to three primary principles: Learn, Engage, and Give. The Park County Community Foundation is a trusted, dynamic, and distinctive philanthropic leader that fosters collaborative community action to shape a healthy, caring community.
About the Dennis & Phyllis Washington Foundation
The Dennis and Phyllis Washington Foundation is the major philanthropic organization for The Washington Companies and the Washington family. The Foundation strives to better the human condition by supporting programs and services that give people the tools to enhance the quality of their lives and to benefit society as a whole. Funding for the Foundation comes from personal contributions from the Washington family and annual contributions from The Washington Companies. Since its inception in 1988, Foundation giving and the Washington family’s personal contributions and pledges to charitable causes total more than a third of a billion dollars. The Foundation website is located at www.dpwfoundation.org.
About Montana Rail Link
Based in Missoula, MT, and formed in 1987, Montana Rail Link (MRL) is a class II regional railroad that operates over 900 route miles of track in Montana and Idaho and employs nearly 1,200 dedicated professionals. MRL provides transportation solutions to over 150 local Montana businesses and moves their product to domestic and international markets on a daily basis. In 2018, MRL safely transported 440,000 carloads of product for local and regional rail shippers. These shipments help feed, clothe, supply and power American and international homes and businesses every day. We are committed to providing transportation services that result in long-term growth and prosperity for our company, customers and employees. We live by our values of fairness, integrity, respect, safety and trust. MRL prides itself on being a good neighbor in the communities we serve. You can learn more about MRL at www.montanarail.com
About Willow Creek Ranch
Willow Creek Ranch is a family-owned ranch with a rich heritage in Park County. While the ranch is a combination of several ranches and prior owners, it has maintained a primary focus upon balancing eco-sensitive ranching with providing superior habitat for the native herds of elk, antelope and deer.
Contact:
Barb Oldershaw, Program Director, Park County Community Foundation
Cell: (406) 570-4580, Barb.oldershaw@pccf-montana.org
GIVE A HOOT
Park County Community Foundation's Community Giving Challenge
2023 Campaign Totals