‘Tis the Season of Giving — and There Are Plenty of Local Organizations That Can Use Your Support

As someone who has worked in the nonprofit industry for a few decades, the end-of-the-year holiday season is often a time for one final push for donations. Donations are the lifeblood of charitable organizations and our generosity is what allows many nonprofits to do their good work and fulfill their mission. And if you are giving to organizations classified as 501(c)(3) charities or foundations, your donation can be tax-deductible – hence the traditional push at the end of the year so donors can get their final tax breaks in.

However, with the relatively recent advent of the much higher standard deduction on our federal income taxes (which eliminated itemizing deductions for most people), plus nationwide efforts such as Giving Tuesday and the local Centre Region effort called Centre Gives, these changes have taken a chunk of the focus off this traditional year-end season of giving to charities. And although I appreciate the attempts to create multiple times a year when donations are at the forefront of the public consciousness, I still feel that now is a great opportunity to keep the spirit of kindness and philanthropy alive here in Happy Valley. 

So it’s with that in mind that I offer a list of 10 local 501(c)(3) public charities that our family donated to this year and the reasons why we gave to them, in the hopes that it spurs some largesse in you to make one final gift to the local charity or charities of your choice. 

Before we begin…  this is not a “Top 10” list. It’s not a competition and there is no rhyme-or-reason to the order in which I’ve listed these charities. The online community-sourced platform called GreatNonprofits lists almost 450 nonprofit organizations in the State College area. It means the 10 listed below are just a small number of the options available to which you can donate. 

Here we go…

1. Footprints In The Field

Footprints in the Field is on the grounds of Calvary Harvest Fields in Boalsburg. It’s a memorial garden created to mark the lives of babies lost in pregnancy and infants soon after birth. As this is a subject near-and-dear to my wife and me, we believe this is a wonderful way to commemorate loss and are grateful to support it. (https://www.footprintsinthefield.org/)

2. Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts

As a long-time believer in the value of the arts, living in a town where over 100,000 people visit every summer for the annual arts festival is a great joy for us. Getting to walk the outstanding sidewalk sale and see and hear the many musical performances, as well as visit with friends and families who make the pilgrimage, is a wonderful bonus of living in Happy Valley. And it helps all the more that Jennifer Shuey is the director of development for the Arts Festival. For those of you who know her, she is a true local – having grown up “down the valley” in Hublersburg – and is a fabulous human being. If she feels something is worthwhile enough for her to be involved in, then we should all support it. (https://arts-festival.com/) 

3. First Night State College

First Night is an offshoot of the Arts Festival and promotes the performing and visual arts as a way to safely get people together in a family atmosphere on New Year’s Eve. So it has the arts component, which we like, and it also jointly produces the Resolution Run 5K with the Nittany Valley Running Club, and we like supporting the other “a” — athletics. Not to mention that the runners and spectators are encouraged to get their “art on” and wear costumes (something I don’t join in on but enjoy watching!). This is an easy decision to help. (https://firstnightstatecollege.com/)

4. Centre County Farmland Trust

The Centre County Farmland Trust dedicates itself to protecting farmland and open space in Central Pennsylvania. They work with locals to protect their farms, mostly from development, so the farms and land can remain part of our beautiful Centre Region landscape. As conservation is another strong interest of ours, this is one way we can help in that effort. Plus, not to be redundant, but Jen Shuey is an officer of the organization so we’re all-in here as well. (https://www.centrecountyfarmlandtrust.org/)

5. Centre LifeLink

Centre LifeLink EMS is probably in your mind this holiday season if you live in the State College area because you see their signs along the sides of every major street. Although it’s technically a donation, they offer “memberships” that guarantee you will not have any out-of-pocket expense for emergency ambulance service. Obviously we all hope to never need emergency ambulance service, and I certainly plan on not ever using my membership freebie, but to support the folks who provide this service 24/7/365 is a nice community gesture. On top of that they offer plenty of health and safety training courses that are open to the public each month. (https://www.centrelifelink.com/)

6. Next Stage Theatre

The Next Stage Theatre Company is one of the roots of the performing arts in Happy Valley. Their motto says it: “Good theatre, done small. No glitz. Just guts.” The pandemic has made a mess of the performing arts industry across the board, and has been especially difficult for small-town theater groups that use local talent and local venues to produce truly local art. Co-founder Mary Skees has spent years forging ahead and although we’re not sure what the next chapter will bring, it’s worth supporting bringing the vision to life. (https://www.nextstagetheatre.org/) 

7. Pink Zone

Pennsylvania Pink Zone’s mission is to unite Central Pennsylvania in the fight against breast cancer. Established in 2011, in its short history it has distributed more than $2 million to support those affected by breast cancer. In case you were unaware, in 2018 (the most recent available statistics) 254,744 new cases of female breast cancer were reported in this country – 11,186 in Pennsylvania – and 42,465 women died from it. If you have family or friends who have dealt with this disease, donating to help those affected by it is a simple choice. (https://www.papinkzone.org/) 

8. Nittany Valley Running Club

The Nittany Valley Running Club focuses on, as I mentioned above, one of the other “a” areas we like to support – athletics. Their purpose is to establish running programs for youth and adult fitness, and to promote running development and competition. They do this in many ways. Races, running groups, running routes, training opportunities, email discussion groups, and anything and everything having to do with running in Central Pennsylvania. They also offer memberships that provide what have to be the best return-on-investment around: $25 for an annual family membership. The discount at Rapid Transit alone is worth it! (https://www.nvrun.com/)

9. Alumni Interest Group

The Penn State Alumni Association (a public charity itself) is the umbrella organization for over 270 Alumni Chapters, Interest Groups, Societies, and Program Groups – many of which are their own 501(c)(3) organizations. One of the Alumni Interest Groups holds special meaning for my wife and me. It’s the honor society that brought us together back in 1982. And her dad is a member from 1951! Their endowment fund supports the continued activities of the group and we are thrilled to be able to help support its existence. (https://www.alumni.psu.edu/s/1218/16/interior.aspx?sid=1218&gid=4&pgid=3333)

10. Mount Nittany ConservancyAs I have served as president and secretary of this fine organization, written about it multiple times on this website and been an unabashed supporter of conservation as well as hiking in general, this is an obvious choice every year for some of our family donations. Conserving 800+ acres and maintaining more than 8 miles of trails on Mt. Nittany, the most iconic geographic symbol of Happy Valley, is a tall order for an all-volunteer group. But one of the other needs for funds is the future acquisition of additional land to conserve, so the “valley creep” never ruins the unblemished beauty of the rising Mountain. We’re happy to support those efforts. https://nittany.org/