Give 8/28, a national day of giving in August during Black Philanthropy Month, aims to bring attention to grassroots community organizations led by Black founders, who address social gaps and economic hardships they have sometimes experienced themselves.
Grassroots nonprofits with little or no name recognition, fundraising infrastructure or access to the traditional philanthropic systems of larger institutions are the focus of the Give 8/28 campaign. These organizations, which benefit Black communities, are often denied equitable access to charitable dollars, donor networks and philanthropic resources.
As awareness of Give 8/28 grows in Memphis, it is important to understand how to participate in the annual observance, why the day exists and who receives support.
For example, the founder of Sweet Cheeks Diaper Ministry, a local nonprofit that gives free supplies to mothers in need, once struggled to care for her own baby.
“I started Sweet Cheeks because I had the need and experienced firsthand what families face by not having access to the essentials for their families,” said Cori Smith, founder and executive director of the free diaper distribution group.
Smith initially set out to help other families better navigate shared challenges.
“When I started, it was not a nonprofit. I just wanted to help people so they wouldn’t experience what I had experienced,” Smith said. “Then as we kept helping people, it became evident that it needed to be a nonprofit because we needed to raise funds so we could help more people.”
Give 8/28 asks people to invest in the value that grassroots organizations similar to Sweet Cheeks bring to addressing community issues.
Margaret Cowan, founder and CEO of I Am My Sister’s Keeper, an organization that helps women overcome obstacles to their success, describes the value of grassroots organizations as rooted in “proximity, trust and investment.”
“We know the women and families we serve,” Cowan said. “We know what barriers look like beyond what can be captured on an intake form or reported as an outcome measure.”
That knowledge, she said, comes from lived experience, relationships, consistency and years of showing up.
“That is the power of grassroots organizations,” Cowan said. “We are not adjacent to the community. We are part of the community.”
Yet, proximity to the people and problems that charitable organizations serve does not mean proximity to the resources needed to sustain the work.
Black community organizations, which tend to be small, are often expected to deliver significant community outcomes with limited resources. Funding may support a program while overlooking operational functions necessary to make that program successful.
“Funders who truly want deeper community impact should look closely at the organizations already doing the work on the ground,” Cowan said. “Invest not only in our programs, but in our capacity. Trust the expertise that comes from proximity.”
For Smith, the need for investment can be measured by something as basic as feeding a baby.
This year for Give 8/28, Sweet Cheeks is focusing its fundraising efforts on infant formula. Smith said recalls and rising prices have made baby formula more expensive.
“If we spend $5,000 on formula, that’s literally one month’s supply,” Smith said.
Philanthropic investment in Black-founded, Black-led or Black-benefitting grassroots organizations helps ensure all facets of the nonprofit ecosystem are fully equipped to undergird their ability to make an impact and advance communities. To drive this vital funding, the Give 8/28 campaign helps these groups increase donations and elevate their fundraising efforts.
The specific date for observing the Black giving initiative, established and organized nationwide by the Young, Black & Giving Back Institute, founded in 2014 in Washington, D.C., carries profound historical significance.
Emmett Till was murdered on Aug. 28, 1955. Eight years later on Aug. 28, hundreds of thousands gathered for the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, where the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech. On Aug. 28, 2008, Barack Obama became the first Black presidential nominee of a major U.S. political party.
Give 8/28 connects the significance of that history with an opportunity to invest in the groundwork that makes grassroots organizations, their work and their impact an essential part of Memphis.
“Supporting Black-led, grassroots organizations is not charity,” said Cowan, in a recent message to donors. “It is an investment in community knowledge, community trust and community power.”
To find other local Black grassroots community organizations such as I Am My Sister’s Keeper and Sweet Cheeks Diaper Ministry to pledge your support and make a donation, go to the nonprofit directory on the website for the Community Foundation for Greater Memphis at LIVEGIVEmidsouth – Community Foundation of Greater Memphis..
