October 28Th Is Pittsburgh Foundation Match Day!

A great opportunity to leverage your donations to support the non profits you care about. Also that same day, the foundation will launch a new website to make researching and giving to local charities easier.

A cut and paste job.

PITTSBURGH, Pa., October 13, 2009 -- The Pittsburgh Foundation will launch a major initiative designed to boost individual charitable giving and support local nonprofit organizations with a special 'Match Day' on Wednesday, October 28.

To celebrate the community's first-ever official day of giving, the Foundation will provide matching grants of $300,000 for the first donations received through its new PittsburghGives program. And a separate fund of $100,000 will provide matching dollars to support Carnegie Library, currently facing branch closures and cuts.

PittsburghGives is a comprehensive directory of nonprofit organizations together with on-line giving tools, developed by the Foundation as an easy-to-use web database to help donors research information about local charitable organizations. The program enables individuals and organizations to give on-line to nonprofits via credit card. The Foundation's donors may award grants directly from their funds to their chosen charities.

The Foundation's matching grants are expected to generate a minimum of $1.2 million in total contributions to eligible nonprofit organizations. "This is historic for Pittsburgh philanthropy," said Grant Oliphant, the Foundation's President and CEO. "Technology is enabling us to move the clock forward in the way that our community supports the critical work of our region's nonprofit organizations. PittsburghGives provides a new, easy and exciting way for people to give to the charities about which they care passionately."

For Match Day on October 28, the Foundation will host a community event at the PPG Place Wintergarden, Downtown, starting at 10:00 a.m. A bank of computers will be available to receive donations, and refreshments will be served. Individuals will also be able to access PittsburghGives and donate through their personal computers by logging on at www.PittsburghGives.org.


PittsburghGives will launch with the detailed profiles of more than 300 local charitable organizations and the Foundation will continue to develop the program.

PittsburghGives is designed to serve as a unique vehicle for nonprofits to showcase their work in the community, detailing information about their charitable programs, missions, management and finances. The Foundation began working with nonprofits in February to build profiles for the PittsburghGives site, and has provided participating charities with materials to help them to promote the program among their supporters and constituents in preparation for Match Day.

Initially, the Foundation planned to provide $200,000 in matching grants, but increased this to $300,000, awarded from its unrestricted grantmaking pool.

The Foundation has added a special $100,000 fund of matching dollars to support Carnegie Library following its announcement of cuts and branch closures to cover a projected budget deficit. Matching dollars to support the Library are provided from two individual donor funds at the Foundation.

“During this harsh economic climate, nonprofits are under even greater strain to meet demand for the vital services and programs they provide, and we hope that our day of giving will inspire and encourage philanthropists young and not-so-young to join in supporting our community,” said Grant Oliphant.

For the Day of Giving, gifts to eligible nonprofits in Allegheny County of $50 or more received by PittsburghGives (up to $2,500 per individual) will be matched

50 percent by the Foundation (to a maximum total of $300,000). For example, a gift of $2,500 will receive a match of $1,250 from the Foundation for a total charitable gift of $3,750. The maximum individual gift for Carnegie Library is $10,000, which qualifies for a matching grant of $5,000.

As a resource for the regional community PittsburghGives is free to access – there are no subscriptions or other charges, with the exception of a credit card fee charged by the service provider for on-line donations.

“After our Day of Giving, we want people to visit PittsburghGives whether they are curious, undertaking research or wish to make a donation. This new program has transformative qualities about the way that giving is done in our community, and the way that nonprofits are able to share information about their work,” said Grant Oliphant.


· The Foundation has also introduced a charitable gift card that may be purchased in increments of
$25, $50 or $100 for sharing with families, friends and business associates. The program works like
any gift card and is available for purchase from the Foundation.


Recipients of the gift cards may redeem them with the Foundation, directing the dollars to the charity or charities they wish to benefit or the cards may be presented to any nonprofit organization in western Pennsylvania for them to redeem with the Foundation.

The card has a one-year expiration, after which the money received for unredeemed cards will be used as part of the Foundation’s community grantmaking initiatives. To purchase gift cards, visit www.PittsburghGives.org, or contact Charles Stout at stoutc@pghfdn.org. Cards may be redeemed at www.PittsburghGives.org