We’re counting down to this year’s Mohawk Valley Gives campaign!

Colorful yard signs in front of homes, businesses, and nonprofit locations all mentioning Mohawk Valley Gives. Similar messages are popping up on billboards throughout Herkimer and Oneida Counties. All this means just one thing – it’s that time of year for the annual Mohawk Valley Gives campaign!

The Community Foundation of Herkimer and Oneida Counties and UpMobility Foundation are getting ready to host the fourth annual “Mohawk Valley Gives,” a multi-county giving campaign to benefit nonprofit organizations serving the Mohawk Valley.

What is Mohawk Valley Gives?

Mohawk Valley Gives is an online giving opportunity where individuals and organizations can directly support local charities doing great work in our communities. Mohawk Valley Gives only focuses on the nonprofits in our communities that serve people right here the Mohawk Valley!

The nature of the event is to simplify giving and support your favorite local nonprofit. You can go to one location at Givemv.org as an individual or an organization and view from a catalog of nonprofits (over 300!), and here you can support more than one charity! The minimum donation is $5 and every donation counts!

And donations can go a long way. Many nonprofits have been selected for matching opportunities that can increase a donation either double or sometimes triple the amount. So if you donate $50, with matches from other organizations, your impact can be $100 or more!

How did Mohawk Valley Gives get started?

Mohawk Valley Gives started in 2022 by the Community Foundation of Herkimer and Oneida Counties. The timing was right off of the pandemic when people were reluctant to attend in-person events but they still wanted to help nonprofits with their fundraising. At that same time, the Community Foundation celebrated its 70th anniversary and there was a desire for a significant initiative to help celebrate that milestone.

The first year of Mohawk Valley Gives there were 137 nonprofits that participated and they raised over $630,000. In 2023 their second year, the number of organizations increased to 255 nonprofits participating and raising $2.4M. In 2024, participating nonprofits jumped to 325 with donors raising over $5.2 million! Mohawk Valley Gives continues to gain recognition and increase its impact–it’s something folks in the community, along with the local nonprofits, look forward to each year.

How can people get involved to support their favorite local charities?

Mohawk Valley Gives unique is an easy way people can giving to their favorite charities with a low barrier of entry. The website, GiveMV.org is easy for folks to use and there are more than 325 nonprofit organizations participating in this year’s campaign.

While viewing the online catalog, donors can add more than one charity to the shopping cart before checking out. This makes it easy for donors to support multiple charities yet only make a one total sum donation. Each designated amount will go to the charities of the donors’ choosing. Once the donation is complete, the donor will immediately receive an email receipt for their donations for each charity they supported. All participating organizations are federally recognized charities so all donations are tax deductible.

Mohawk Valley Gives yard signs are practically everywhere, how did they get put up in so many places so quickly?

We love seeing the signs out! Mohawk Valley Gives created the yard signs for participating nonprofits to take and place in front of their locations to let the community know they are participating in this year’s campaign. September is becoming Mohawk Valley Gives Season!

What action should folks take if they see the signs?

The yard signs are a reminder in our minds that September 19th is the day with donations being taken beginning with the Kick-Off Day of September 15th! Remember to go to the website GiveMV.org beginning September 15th, donate, and to share it on your social media, send it to your friends and co-workers to encourage them to support their favorite Mohawk Valley nonprofit organizations. Sharing this with friends and family would be like saying, “I just donated, and you can too!”

Remember, the Mohawk Valley giving campaign is fast approaching and will be here before you know it!