Local YWCA Wins Nationwide Fundraising Challenge

From YWCA Evanston/North Shore: YWCA Evanston/North Shore raised $556,403 in private donations to win the grand prize of a $100,000 grant through The Allstate Foundation Purple Purse Challenge. The Purple Purse Challenge is an annual campaign that raises awareness about domestic violence and awards grants to the nonprofit service providers that raise the most money in the month of October, which is Domestic Violence Awareness Month.

YWCA Evanston/North Shore topped the leader board of nonprofit organizations with budgets of more than $1.5 million by raising $556,403 through donations from the community. Together with the $100,000 prize, the organization gains critical funding to support its comprehensive domestic violence services including its 24-hour crisis line, emergency shelter, legal advocacy, counseling services, and longer-term housing program known as “Bridges.”

“Nearly 60 percent of our $5 million budget comes from private giving, so we are incredibly grateful for the support we received from donors -- from Evanston, to Glencoe, to Skokie, to Niles to Winnetka -- during the Purple Purse Challenge,” said Karen Singer, CEO and president of YWCA Evanston/North Shore. “That money will support survivors in the sixteen communities that comprise our service area. I’m also awed by the support of our employees, board members, swim families, and others who joined with us to make this happen. We couldn’t have done it without their enthusiasm and tenacity.”

According to The Allstate Foundation, public fundraising is a vital revenue source for domestic violence nonprofits like YWCA Evanston/North Shore. A national survey found that on a single day last year, nearly 12,000 requests from survivors of domestic violence for emergency shelter, child care, financial aid and other services went unanswered because programs lacked funding.

Said Singer, “We rely heavily on fundraising to support our domestic violence programs. What that really means is that the generosity of our donors and the commitment of The Allstate Foundation make it possible for us to change lives every day.”

Image via YWCA Evanston/North Shore