Area nonprofit groups are hoping to hear from regular supporters and new fans when Fairfield County's Community Foundation (FCCF) presents its fifth annual online Day of Giving.

Fairfield County Giving Day makes it fast and easy to support a favorite nonprofit. The mission of the annual event is to raise as much money as possible for nonprofit organizations in 24 hours, all done through online donations.

On Thursday, March 1, from midnight until 11:59 pm, everyone is invited to help support a favorite program, cause, or nonprofit with an online donation of at least $10.

All participating organizations are 501(c)(3) charitable organizations that serve residents of Fairfield County; the vast majority are based within the county. Organizations have gone through an application process in order to participate in Giving Day.

Donations are 100 percent tax deductible.

Fairfield County Giving Day 2017 raised more than $1.4 million, a new record for the event. In addition, 2017 outcomes represented a 121 percent increase in giving from Fairfield County Giving Day's inaugural year in 2014.

According to a Summary Report prepared by FCCF, 414 nonprofits raised their funding totals in 2017, compared to 267 in 2014, and 34 percent of last year's donors made gifts to organizations for the first time.

Donations were received from 48 states, and 11 countries in addition to the United States.

Eighteen Newtown-based organizations collected a total of $25,553 during last year's campaign.

The following Newtown-based organizations have registered for this year: Ben's Lighthouse, The Catherine Violet Hubbard Foundation, C.H. Booth Library, Embrace Hope Equine Assisted Therapy Program, Friends of Second Company Governor's Horse Guard, Kitten Associates, Mary Hawley Society, and Merryhill Child Care Center.

Also registered to participate are Newtown Children's Museum (EverWonder Children's Museum), Newtown Parent Connection, Newtown Scholarship Association, Newtown Youth & Family Services, Perry Ministries, The Resiliency Center of Newtown, Sandy Hook Promise Foundation, The Exceptional Partner, and Town Players of Newtown.

In addition, Ben's Bells Connecticut (listed as Ben's Bells Project), which was founded as Ben's Bells Newtown

in 2013 but moved to a new studio in Bethel in 2015, is participating again.

Those looking to donate on March 1 should visit fcgives.org. Organizations can be found by searching for their name. Website visitors also have the option to searching through general groupings, with organizations listed alphabetically within each category and also by town.

In addition to an onslaught of donations received during the 24-hour period, organizations can earn bonuses, or grant prizes, for a number of special recognitions including Most Unique Donors, Most Dollars Raised, Get Up and Give Fairfield County Launch Prizes ($1,000 each, for the first ten nonprofits to receive 25 unique donations of $25 or more), Top of the Morning Prizes ($5,000 each, for the two nonprofits from each budget category that raise the most dollars by 9 am), an Power Hour Prizes, which will vary from $1,000 to $5,000 during different points of the day.

For the fourth straight year, Curtain Call repeated in 2017 as the top performing Giving Day participant. Donations and cash prizes for the Stamford-based theater company totaled $81,298. The second highest group in 2017 was Norwalk-based Family & Children's Agency, which earned $49,060.

[naviga:img class="aligncenter wp-image-306600" src="https://newtownbee.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/Fairfield-Country-Giving-Day-2018-SQUARE.png" alt="Fairfield County Giving Day 2018 SQUARE" width="400" height="393" /]