Through a crowdsourcing website that Darien nonprofits are beginning to use, you can now contribute to a specific cause for a specific group in town, and one of the first local nonprofits to use it is At Home in Darien, which wants $1,065.74 to replace brakes and tires on its van for seniors.
Actually, At Home now wants $565.74, after the law firm of Wofsey, Rosen, Kweskin & Kuriansky gave $500 to the cause. Joe Pankowski Jr., chairman of the Darien Aging Commission, is a member of the firm and presented the check to the Community Fund of Darien.
The rest of the money will be raised through a new website, The Impact Vine, an online giving website developed by the Community Fund of Darien that lets people support projects they care about.
Image from the Impact Vine website
From the home page of the new ImpactVine.com website
Impact Vine works as a crowdfunding platform for lower Fairfield County nonprofits to use as a tool to raise money for projects in their communities. Sixteen Fairfield County nonprofits, including At Home in Darien and Person-to-Person, have signed up to use the website to raise money for projects.
The site launched earlier this month. It was developed with support from Fairfield County’s Community Foundation and others.
From left: Susan Serven, project director for The Impact Vine; Anne McGuire, president of the Bard of Directors for At Home In Darien; Joe Pankowski Jr. of Wofsey, Rosen, Kweskin & Kuriansky; Carrier Bernier, executive director of The Community Fund of Darien
“We’ve been watching The Community Fund of Darien’s development of The Impact Vine for a while now, and are very pleased to be one of its first corporate matching gift partners,” Pankowski said.
“Using the Internet to fund agencies working to solve local problems is a leading-edge way to address these issues, and crowdfunding certainly seems to be the way of the future.”
The website is free for qualifying nonprofits and 100 percent of the funds are paid to the nonprofit upon the completion of a successful project.
“It’s terrific to have WRKK on board with us as we launch this new initiative, especially with such a generous matching gift to such a worthwhile program as At Home In Darien’s ‘Help Darien’s Seniors Travel Safely!’ project,” said Impact Vine Project Director, New Canaan resident Susan Serven.
- See also: You Can Help Keep Darien Seniors Safe: Help Buy New Brakes & Tires for Seniors’ Van (March 29)
Some of the 16 lower Fairfield County nonprofits that have agreed to raise funds for projects on the ImpactVine.com website. The four others are Domus, Children’s Learning Centers of Fairfield County, Family & Children’s Agency and the Open Door Shelter.
The Community Fund of Darien is an independent, results-oriented, volunteer-driven nonprofit organization that helps to solve local problems by awarding grants and fostering new community initiatives to support critical human services in Darien, Stamford and Norwalk.
“Why give to nonprofit projects via The Impact Vine?” the website asks on its About page. It answers:
We do your homework for you. We review the financials and nonprofit
status of each nonprofit sponsoring a project. Also, we review and
monitor each project to ensure the money raised will be used for the
proposed purpose.
How to use the website, from the About page.
“With this donation, Wofsey, Rosen, Kweskin & Kuriansky becomes one of The Impact Vine’s early sponsors,” Community Fund Executive Director Carrie Bernier said. “Their gift to The Impact Vine, benefiting At Home In Darien, will help ensure safe transportation for seniors so they can stay connected to the community and thrive.”
For more information, please email info@CommunityFundDarien.org.
The Impact Vine is on Facebook and Twitter, as well as Instagram.
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