MicroGiving Events

MicroGiving's 1st Annual Fishing Tournament!

Date: Saturday June 20th 2009
Click Here for More Infomation! Fishing Tournament Page.

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MicroGiving's First Annual Holiday Party
When: December 22, 2008
Where: The Blue Fish (map)

A Fresh Face to Philanthropy

What economic downturn? When local business entrepreneur and philanthropist—John Ferber, kicked off his first annual charity fundraiser all of Delray Beach jumped on the bandwagon. Hosted at The Blue Fish Restaurant on Delray’s Atlantic Avenue, over 100 local Delrayians and 30 participating sponsors showed their support of The MicroGiving Foundation.

           So what was all of the commotion about?

“Micro” giving is a new concept in the world of charity and it’s sweeping the nation quickly off its feet. The launch of wwww.MicroGiving.com in early 2008 was one of the first of its kind to build an online community around the concept of ‘giving small charitable donations’ directly to individual recipients and families in need. In other words, “MicroGiving.com is like the eBay of giving, but instead of buyers and sellers there are donors and recipients”, says founder and CEO John Ferber. 

It’s no surprise that Ferber’s fundraiser stirred up such a local buzz. People everywhere are talking about this brilliant concept which allows anyone to give within his means to make a difference. The event was hosted in an effort to spread social awareness among the Delray Beach community, and raise funds to help support The MicroGiving Foundation. The fundraiser was a tremendous success as the hip and the high-rollers engaged in an evening of networking, great food, drinks, live music, and a silent auction that raked in quite a pretty penny. Despite the economy, local sponsoring participants were very charitable in donating auction items to benefit MicroGiving:  “We were exceedingly lucky. . . from private jet rides to full-blown spa packages, sponsors were very happy and eager to help”, said executive director Michelle Fraedrick. Attendees, too, were surprisingly very generous in their money donations, giving from as little as one dollar to over two-thousand dollars. “That’s the beauty of micro-giving. It allows anyone to give within their means—not just ‘black-tie’ philanthropists with big bucks and big bank accounts”, said Fraedrick.

We’re beginning to see a new trend emerge as people everywhere are changing their attitudes about giving, especially among the young business professional scene. “It seems that more and more younger people are starting to give these days”, said Ferber. They’ve become a fresh new face to philanthropy. “I guess when times are tough and people are hurting—we truly start to realize the importance of charity”, said Aravinda Neuman, an attendee at the event. Ferber anticipates that charitable giving will remain steadfast despite recession, claiming that the success of the fundraiser was just a taste of what is to come.

Fraedrick concluded, “The event was a great finale to 2008 and a fresh, optimistic start to 2009.”