Editor’s Note: Kathryn Harvey is the founder of Neue South Collective, a Spartanburg-based marketing firm that supports nonprofits locally and across the state.
Tough times call for extraordinary measures.
In my twenty years working with nonprofits, I haven’t seen anything quite like what I’ve seen in 2020. I’ve been knee deep with local organizations in the Spartanburg area and across the state for over three years now, and I can say unequivocally that nonprofit leaders have been some of the most creative, innovative and inspiring folks during this pandemic … even through all the stress.
Which is why we need to support them. I know for a fact that some of our smaller and treasured organizations have lost upwards of $100K this year, and that is a very challenging gap to fill.
So this Giving Tuesday, I’m asking the Spartanburg community to dig deep, and give BIG.
It will take a collective effort to pull our charitable organizations through 2021. If we think things are tight in December, they’ll only be tighter by March.
Organizations that did not benefit from an initial influx of funding when the pandemic hit are hurting. Our nonprofits who provide us science education, arts & culture, and respite outdoors have been working diligently to keep our children enriched and our community safely engaged, and they need your support right now.
According to a survey from Together SC and the College of Charleston’s Riley Center for Livable Communities, two-thirds of SC nonprofits say they’ll run out of cash within 6 months. Some already have. It’s increasingly more difficult to serve the community when you’re worried about keeping the lights on.
And that’s why I’m asking folks who have a little extra to give, to give it now. A significant injection of unrestricted funds is what our nonprofits need most.
