Here’s how Nevada’s Big Give has raised about $4 million in seven years

By Camalot Todd

Sunday, March 25, 2018 | 2 a.m.

Stacey Wedding was sipping coffee at a cafe with her friend discussing the gap between the generosity of Nevadans and the deserving charities they wanted to help when she stumbled upon an idea.

That day seven years ago she created Nevada’s Big Give, a one-day online fundraising event that happens each year on social media where donors can select from more than 200 nonprofits and qualifying public schools statewide for a designated contribution.

“I really started it because I wanted one simple, fun way for people to give back, and one day for where our state unites and comes together to raise awareness and to raise money for all the organizations doing good work,” Wedding said.

The annual Nevada Big Give event on Thursday netted $627,160 by 4,342 donors for 235 nonprofits. It was short of Wedding’s goal of $1 million.

“I’m going to tell you candidly, I have had a goal and vision of that since the first year, and the reality is that we are going to get to it. So every year we say that is something we want to move toward and I think we are getting closer to it,” she said. “I do believe in the spirit and generosity of Nevadans.”

The fundraiser is an opportunity for smaller nonprofits to not only raise funds but also recruit volunteers and build awareness, Wedding said.

One smaller nonprofit that benefited was Leaders in Training, a charity started by a former Clark County School District teacher to help empower and support first-generation college students in Las Vegas.

“We’re a small nonprofit; people in Nevada don’t know who we are, but because of this platform, we’re easily able to get some publicity and get our name out there,” said Erica Mosca, the CEO and founder of Leaders in Training. “It’s a nice thing for nonprofits — it’s not competitive, it’s about the community.”

Leaders in Training raised $13,020 during the event, which ranked in the top 10 of total donations received. Safe Nest, Sierra Nevada College, Community Cat Coalition Clark County and the Tortoise Group were also in the top 10.

Since its start, Nevada’s Big Give has had more than 15,000 unique donors support nearly 500 Nevada nonprofits and qualifying schools with more than $3.4 million in donations.

The organization, which is run by volunteers, partners with United Way of Southern Nevada, which has paid staff, to help support the charitable day and reach a larger audience. Wedding said that the partnership helps benefit the whole community.

“We want to offer anybody and everybody the opportunity to participate because at the end of the day everybody has a favorite charity or one we want to get more involved with or one we’ve been touched by,” she said. “Everyone can do their part, and Nevada’s Big Give makes it fun, makes it easy.”