One day, every April 1st, all of Rhode Island would come together to support its nonprofits.
A great idea that needed a strategy to become a movement.
In 2020, the concept of a statewide giving day was still unfamiliar to most donors and nonprofits in Rhode Island. The biggest challenge wasn't awareness it was belief. Could hundreds of organizations rally under one campaign? Could donors be moved to give on a single day, year after year, until it felt like a tradition? Nonprofits needed a brand strong enough to activate independently. The campaign needed media that reached beyond the usual nonprofit audience. And the whole thing had to grow smarter every year not just bigger because the budget was nonprofit-sized and efficiency was non-negotiable.
Donations grew from $2.29M in 2021 to $6M in 2026 more than doubling in five years.
Over $17.5M raised for Rhode Island nonprofits since launch. 1 in 4 Rhode Islanders reached: 250,000 people visited 401Gives.org. 1M+ video views on Meta since 2021. Paid media costs down year over year while reach expanded statewide. Nearly 1,000 nonprofits trained to fundraise better on giving day and all year long. Every campaign built on the last.
