**GIVING TUESDAY NEWS RELEASE**

On the heels of the Black Friday and Cyber Monday shopping frenzy, comes GivingTuesday, a global initiative of giving that harnesses the collective power of individuals, communities and organizations to collaborate and give back to their favourite causes.

Last year, an estimated six million Canadians took part in GivingTuesday and found ways to ‘Do Good Stuff’. Today, as the holiday season is fast approaching, CanadaHelps and GIV3 are calling upon Canadians to join the cause and break that record by spreading the act of giving back, inspiring kindness, generosity and helping others in big and small ways.

“Each year GivingTuesday continues to see growth in donations. Since its inception in 2013, CanadaHelps has seen an increase of 468 per cent in overall donations made on the day of GivingTuesday and we saw a 54 per cent spike in new monthly donations,” says Marina Glogovac, President and CEO, CanadaHelps. “But, GivingTuesday is not just about fundraising, it’s about helping others in any way you can.”

Now in its sixth year, GivingTuesday kicks off the beginning of the charitable season with more than 6,500 partner organizations registered in Canada and over 40 community movements active in cities and towns across the country.

There are many ways for Canadians to get involved in GivingTuesday. Each year, Canadians ‘Do Good Stuff’ by giving their time, money, talent and voice in support of thousands of causes.  This year many GivingTuesday partners including The United Way, Autism Speaks Canada, Canadian Blood Services, The Shoebox Project and Hockey 4 Youth/Let Kids Play Foundation have already set up events taking place across the country.

“We’re expecting millions of Canadians to participate in GivingTuesday again this year. You can donate to your favourite charity, volunteer your time at a soup kitchen or any organization that is in need of hands-on-help,” says Lys Hugessen, President of GIV3. “The world needs more Canada right now – more Canada means more generosity and more kindness. GivingTuesday is for everyone to find their own way to ‘Do Good Stuff’.”

Visit www.GivingTuesday.ca to find out what’s happening in your community and follow the conversation online using #GivingTuesdayCA, “#MardiJeDonne”, and #UNSELFIE.

To download images, logos or videos click here.

Join the conversation:
Website: GivingTuesday.ca
Facebook: @givingtuesdaycanada
Twitter: @GivingTuesdayCA

About GivingTuesday (#GivingTuesdayCA)
GivingTuesday was launched in Canada in 2013 by GIV3 and CanadaHelps.org. GivingTuesday is a day for the entire charitable sector and encourages all Canadians to join the movement and give and volunteer for charities of their choice. GivingTuesday was originally founded in the US by 92nd Street Y in partnership with the UN Foundation. www.givingtuesday.ca

About GIV3
GIV3 is a registered Canadian charitable foundation with a unique mission: to encourage more Canadians to be more giving (greater Giving, Inspiration, Volunteering). GIV3 does not represent any specific charity but encourages Canadians to give to any registered charities of their choice. http://www.giv3.ca

About CanadaHelps.org
For charities, CanadaHelps builds effective and affordable fundraising technology, and provides free training and education so that all charities, regardless of size, have the capacity to increase their impact and succeed in the digital age. For Canadians, our website, www.canadahelps.org, provides a convenient, safe and trusted, one stop destination for donating to (once, monthly, or gifts of securities), fundraising for, or learning about any charity in Canada. Founded in 2000 and itself a charity, CanadaHelps has raised nearly $1B for charities from almost 2 million donors. 

Filed under: Local News