KMXT 100.1 FM Public Radio in Kodiak, Alaska
Kayla Desroches/KMXT
Nonprofits in Kodiak are turning to Facebook to raise funds.
For Giving Tuesday, which is the altruistic alternative to Cyber Monday or Black Friday, Facebook has paired up with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to match donations dollar-for-dollar. The Foundation provides the funds and Facebook the platform, which brings the spirit of the holidays into 2016.
Sarah Harrington, the vice president of the Kodiak Historical Society, says this method could reach out to a younger generation.
“So, perhaps they don’t subscribe to the newspaper, but they are likely on Facebook or Snapchat. A lot of these new social media tools are allowing us to find us to find new audiences to gain memberships or get involved in some of our causes.”
Harrington started a Giving Tuesday Fundraiser page for the Kodiak Historical Society and the Baranov Museum, which the historical society operates. While the fundraising will continue for a total of 14 days, the foundation will only match the amounts the nonprofits reach by the end of today.
Donation through Facebook also plays into what the social media site is famous for, which is the ability of its users to share what’s going on in their lives. Harrington says users have the option to donate publicly, which means others can see that they’ve donated and what nonprofit they’ve donated to.
“Even if you don’t have time to volunteer and you wish that you did, here’s another way that you can engage, and you can show people this is what’s meaningful for me or this is what I care about. Another one for the things I really appreciated about seeing these fundraisers on the Facebook feed today is the fact that it created some very comfortable competition between nonprofit groups.”
For instance, the Alutiiq Museum has also started a fundraising page.
As of 4 p.m. today, the Baranov Museum and Kodiak Historical Society had received a little more than $300 dollars out of a goal of $1,000.
