More people than ever donated to NEOMED’s Blue Fund on Giving Day, June 6. With the help of a generous matching gift from Huntington Bank, a record-breaking 206 donors raised $112,525 in a single day.
Talk about maximizing impact!
Huntington pledged to match up to the first $36,000 raised by NEOMED. “People tell me that they wait till Giving Day so that NEOMED can benefit from Huntington’s match. People really appreciate that opportunity to maximize their impact,’’ said Craig Eynon, director of alumni relations and annual giving. “Over the whole year, we have 900 donors, so to say 206 came in in just one day, Giving Day—that tells me people get excited about it,’’ said Eynon.
Teaming up
This year, for the first time, people could donate through teams: Alumni, Students, Leadership, College of Medicine, College of Pharmacy, College of Graduate Studies, Foundation Board, Employees or Friends. Throughout the day, a live leaderboard was displayed on campus to show which team was in the lead. After some intense competition, the Employees –represented by 65 donors—won.
NEOMED inspires loyalty
Each year, the graduating class makes a gift to NEOMED. This year, the students waited until Giving Day so that their gift of $2,000 would be matched by Huntington Bank, to maximize their impact. “We appreciate the Class of 2018 choosing to help the students following them at NEOMED,’’ Eynon said.
And when a social media post advertised that the next donation of $500 or more would win a sweatshirt blanket, a former dean of the College of Graduate Studies, Walter Horton, Ph.D., donated that amount—and then turned around to make his own challenge, saying he’d pass along the prize to the next person who donated $500 or more.
It wasn’t long until Joseph Zarconi, M.D. (’81), professor and chair of internal medicine and interim associate dean for health affairs in the College of Medicine, made his own donation, capturing the blanket and helping the Blue Fund meet its mission: providing student scholarships and making all things possible at NEOMED.
Did you miss Giving Day?
You can still support NEOMED students by giving to the Blue Fund today.