Philanthropy is not exclusive, it’s for everyone. Thanks to a number of advances in technology, collective giving is more effective than ever and people are able to come together to make something “big” possible through the power of many. Nothing proved this concept more than this week’s 24-hour Giving Challenge, in which our community’s generosity has never been stronger, raising more than 74,000 gifts from almost 50,000 people.

While the buzz of those 24 hours causes a whirlwind of excitement throughout our community, the real magic is what happens leading up to the challenge. For months, participating nonprofits have been coming together as an organization, pulling their board, staff and volunteers together for an “all hands on deck, full steam ahead” approach to increase their capacity and make the most out of this almost too-good-to-be-true opportunity to raise unrestricted funding and matching dollars from The Patterson Foundation. The creativity we see from the nonprofits as they develop their campaign around the “Be The One” theme is truly infinite. It’s always fun to see what sprouts out each Challenge, like Healthy Start Coalition of Sarasota County’s “Be The Onesie” campaign to help babies.

Each year, the one question we are always asked is who “won” the Giving Challenge? Of course there are always the usual suspects at the top of the leaderboard with dollars raised – Honor Rescue, Cat Depot, Phelan McDermid Syndrome Foundation, etc. – but the question goes deeper than that. The answer is everyone.

While the unrestricted dollars are crucial for a nonprofit’s operation, the Giving Challenge goes beyond the dollars. Thanks to this opportunity, local nonprofits had the chance to build on existing donor relationships, and cultivate new ones through creative and interactive campaigns. They hosted events to bring their mission in-front of the community and bring the Giving Challenge to life. This year’s most popular event theme – yoga!

Even local businesses had an opportunity to make an impact. Almost 100 of them partnered with nonprofits to help spread the word about the Giving Challenge. Station 400 in Downtown Sarasota created a special “Be The One” menu to bring attention to the opportunity to have your donation matched during the 24-hours. However, Sharky’s on the Pier in Venice takes home the MVP award for hosting a Giving Challenge fair for more than 20 nonprofits to set up booths at their space and get in front of hundreds of people walking from the parking lot onto the beach. They even generously offered free appetizers and entrees to people who donated $100 or more during the Challenge.

My favorite part of the Giving Challenge is when nonprofits collaborate and partner together in order to maximize their effectiveness. Each year hundreds of nonprofits combine their efforts to host events, help get each other in front of different audiences, and work together to address different causes. For example, this year the Girl Scouts of Gulfcoast Florida partnered with the Library Foundation for Sarasota County to stress the importance of reading to the girls. They hosted a campfire storytelling event that included a book giveaway, facilitated readings, games and s’mores! UnidosNow also partnered with Florida Studio Theatre to create a theatrical piece about the unique experiences Latino students in the U.S. encounter, as well as the common issues they face as teenagers in this country.

Lastly, at the end of the day the Giving Challenge ultimately benefits our community as a whole. The difference this unrestricted funding will make for these organizations and those working right on the front lines of change will amplify over time as they reinvest the impact locally. Follow the dollars contributed and be on the lookout for the stories and impact that will come out of the outpouring of generosity by our community. We truly thank everyone who took the opportunity to be the one to make a difference.

Roxie Jerde is president and CEO of the Community Foundation of Sarasota County.