MARQUETTE — With Giving Tuesday set for Dec. 3, Grow & Lead Community and Youth Development is spreading the word about how Yoopers can support local nonprofits through the Give 906 campaign.

The Upper Peninsula-wide campaign aims to generate $906,000 in donations for U.P. nonprofits on Dec. 3 in conjunction with Giving Tuesday, which is a “global generosity movement, unleashing the power of people and organizations to transform their communities and their world,” organizers said in a press release.

“There are 2,230 nonprofit organizations in the Upper Peninsula. These nonprofits are providing services that impact our friends, neighbors and even ourselves. Our communities rely on these things,” Victoria Leonhardt, an associate at Grow & Lead Community and Youth Development, said in an email. “When we give locally, it makes a huge difference for these organizations, and (as) a donor, you can see how your money was put to work. Local organizations also need volunteers, so if giving financially isn’t for you, you could become a volunteer.”

For U.P. nonprofits that wish to be part of the Give 906 campaign, the registration deadline is coming up on Wednesday, Leonhardt said.

Nonprofits that register with Give 906 will receive a toolkit of resources, a listing in the online directory and press release, a pin on an interactive map, social media promotion, their project uploaded to the Giving Tuesday website and other assistance that may be needed, organizers said.

“By registering with Give 906, we send your information to the Giving Tuesday national campaign, which gets your cause on a larger platform,” Leonhardt said. “When we’re able to pool our resources and show collectively the great things happening in the U.P., it amplifies our voice.”

Nonprofits can use the platform to generate donations, gain volunteers and more, she said.

“There are all kinds of campaigns that a nonprofit can put together. From hosting an in-person event to setting up a peer-to-peer fundraiser on social media, there are many ways to leverage the generosity of the day,” Leonhardt said. “Although many of the goals for the participating nonprofits that have registered so far have been monetary, Giving Tuesday is a great time to recruit volunteers and/or board members, have a pay-it-forward campaign, provide education about your cause or host a drive for products that your nonprofit or constituents need.”

The campaign was created last year as a platform to help Upper Peninsula nonprofits raise funds and awareness on Giving Tuesday, organizers said.

“We had received feedback from a number of nonprofits that there is a lot of national exposure for Giving Tuesday, but there wasn’t as much awareness on how to give locally. We launched the campaign in 2018, and had $405,440 in donations reported by the organizations that participated,” Amy Quinn, CEO of Grow and Lead, said in a press release. “As a capacity-building center that serves the entire Upper Peninsula, coordinating a U.P.-based directory for Giving Tuesday projects was a perfect fit with our mission. We’re excited to see how much will be raised in 2019.”

With hundreds of thousands of dollars raised in 2018, organizers were “very excited for the success of the first year,” Leonhardt said.

“Last year there were 56 nonprofits from across the U.P. that registered,” she said. “There were many Facebook fundraisers, specifically, that popped up that day from individuals that wanted to support a cause. It was inspiring to see not only the nonprofits out sharing their works, but to see the supporters saying, ‘Here’s why I care about this organization and what they do.'”

Organizers are already looking forward to next year, Leonhardt said, noting they will add a sponsorship program in 2020 and hope to provide stickers and T-shirts to all participating organizations next year.

Visit give906.org for more information on how to register, donate and get involved.

Donors and volunteers are encouraged to use #give906 on social media to share how they gave locally. A directory of participating nonprofits will be available on Nov. 26, organizers said.

To learn more about Giving Tuesday, visit givingtuesday.org, givingtuesdaykids.org, or find Giving Tuesday on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.

Cecilia Brown can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 248.