HUNTER SMITH / THE EXPRESS Centre Foundation volunteers and children set off streamers at the end of last year’s 36-hour online giving marathon on May 15, 2025. The Centre County community gave a record-breaking $2,836,970 during the Centre Foundation’s 14th annual fundraiser.

BELLEFONTE — From now until 8 p.m. tomorrow, every donation you make to nonprofits in Centre County will have an even bigger impact.

Centre Gives, the Centre Foundation’s 36-hour online giving campaign, launches at 8 a.m. today and continues through 8 p.m. May 7. The annual event, which raises millions of dollars, empowers the community to support more than 200 local nonprofits and helps each donation go further.​

To honor its community-wide impact, the Centre County commissioners officially proclaimed today and tomorrow as “Centre Gives Days” throughout the county.

Dave Lieb, Centre Foundation’s new president and CEO, who took the role in November, explained that the event was established 14 years ago to strengthen and simplify support for local nonprofits.​

“It was an effort to help consolidate and bring together our nonprofit partners to help them raise the support they need to do the important work that they do in the county,” Lieb said.

Since its inception in 2012, Centre Gives has invested more than $22.5 million in over 230 local organizations, according to the foundation. Last year alone, 5,400 unique donors made 17,000 gifts, raising over $2.8 million for charity.

This year, the campaign aims to surpass $3 million in giving, Lieb said, which would make 2026 the most successful Centre Gives to date.

During the 36 hours, donors can visit centregives.org to make secure donations to participating nonprofits. Community Impact Director Nathaniel Rasmussen, who joined Leib and Centre Foundation Volunteer Chair Erin Meitzler for Tuesday’s proclamation, encouraged residents to browse participating organizations ahead of time at www.centregives.org/organizations to find new groups they may want to support.

​New this year is a feature allowing users to filter nonprofits by geographic area.

“Folks living in the different parts of the county can see which organizations are benefitting their neighbors,” Rasmussen said.

Donations start at $10, a threshold Meitzler said helps make the campaign broadly accessible.

“Everybody can get involved,” she said. “Minimum donations start at $10, so it’s a great way for our entire community to support nonprofits that they care about.”​

Meitzler added that every dollar is amplified through stretch pools provided by the Centre Foundation and the Hamer Foundation, which total $500,000 this year.

“For every dollar that you give to the organization you choose, a portion of that stretch pool will also go to that organization, so it’s a great way to amplify your gift,” Rasmussen said.

“For many of our nonprofit partners, this is their largest fundraiser of the year, so they really rely on the support that’s provided during Centre Gives,” added Meitzler.

According to the foundation, several large organizations regularly raise more than $100,000 during the campaign, while other, smaller nonprofits generate as much as 60% of their annual budgets over the 36 hours.

“This really is an important and impactful event for the county,” Lieb said, crediting donors, nonprofits and local leaders for sustaining the campaign’s growth. “It is the support we receive from our donors, our nonprofit organizations and elected officials that help this program be as successful as it is.”

Meitzler mentioned that the business community’s support has grown significantly this year, with local sponsors funding “Power Hours” that offer additional prizes to boost participation. The nonprofit with the most unique donors each hour receives an additional $500.

“I want to thank the commissioners for this important proclamation,” Lieb said. “Your assistance in helping us to do the work we do throughout the county for our neighbors, families we serve, pets and animals, is incredibly important.”

Centre County Commissioner Mark Higgins said the campaign reflects the region’s strong nonprofit ecosystem.

“This demonstrates one of the major reasons why Centre County is such an amazing place to live,” Higgins said. “We have two, two-and-a-half times as many charities as a county our size would normally have, and they are all working together to raise funds as efficiently as possible.”

He said many of those organizations support essential county services, including human services, criminal justice, aging, housing and homelessness programs.

“It lets us do so much more, and lets us have so many more enriched programs,” Higgins said.

He said that collaboration has contributed to improved outcomes in the justice system and other service areas.

​”We urge Centre County citizens to give generously,” he said.