We were disappointed to learn that Amazon has discontinued their AmazonSmiles program which benefitted nonprofits like ours. Thank you to everyone who shopped at AmazonSmiles and designated the National Foundation for Ectodermal Dysplasias (NFED) as your charity of choice. We received $15,033 in funding from 2014-2022 and each year, the amount increased.
If you were using AmazonSmiles to help the NFED, you may be wondering what you can do now. How can you help? We have a great idea for you.
Do you know about corporate matching gift programs? It’s free money and an easy way for your gift to the Foundation to go twice as far.
Corporate matching gifts are a type of philanthropy in which companies financially match donations that their employees make to the NFED. When an employee makes a donation, the employee requests the matching gift from his/her employer, who then makes its own donation to us. We are grateful to those of you who already are doing this! It’s a huge help. Companies double and sometimes even triple your original donation.
An estimated $4-$7 billion in matching gift funds go unclaimed every year. 65% of Fortune 500 companies offer matching gift programs, and over 26 million individuals work for companies with matching gift programs according to Double the Donation.
Volunteer and the NFED Gets Paid!
Many companies offer volunteer grants as well. If an employee volunteers for the NFED, there might be an opportunity to qualify for a volunteer grant payable to our Foundation at a certain rate per hour or at a set amount.
We Make It Easy for You
Did you know that the NFED can help you determine if your company offers a program? We have a simple tool on our donate page to see if your company has a matching gift program and if so, how to proceed.
Here are the steps:
- Make a gift to the NFED on our donate page.
- Enter your employer’s name into the box found under “My company will match my gift” and hit enter.
- You will see matching gift and volunteer grant guidelines if your company has them. If you don’t see your company listed in the drop down, please check with your HR department or your company’s owner.
- Follow those guidelines to apply for the matching gift.
It may take a little more effort and time on your part to pursue the matching gift, but it is so worth it. You are making double the impact with your generous gift.
Some companies have simple, automatic process for matching gifts. The employee enters their corporate email address and the matching gift is automatically processed. Be aware that companies typically apply minimums and maximums to their corporate philanthropy programs and may not always match dollar for dollar if your gift is under or over these amounts.
Watch the Deadlines
Different companies have different deadlines to submit your matching gift request. Be aware of these dates so that you don’t miss out on this easy money.
Standard match request submission deadlines may include:
- End of the calendar year.
- A set number of months after the date of the donation, most often 3-12 months.
- End of January, February, or March in the year subsequent to when the donation was made.
Are you ready to raise more from matching gifts?
Share this information with your friends and family who support the Foundation. Their companies might help, too. Thank you!
Please, feel free to contact me at lea@nfed.org or call me at 618-566-6871 if you have any questions or need help with applying for a matching gift.