Community has always been at the core of the annual , and this year it coincides with #407 Day, a day Orange County has proclaimed to encourage financial support in Central Florida on April 7. At UCF, we 麻豆精品 S檝e seen how one day of generosity can impact the entire campus of Knights: the marching band, the athletic department, research labs and first-generation students. During UCF 麻豆精品 S檚 three previous Days of Giving, more than 8,000 donors joined the 24-hour movement 麻豆精品 S� contributing a total of nearly $1.3 million.
The donations have come from聽every time zone 麻豆精品 S� Hawaii, Alaska,聽California, Colorado, Nebraska and New聽York 麻豆精品 S� and from every walk of life 麻豆精品 S斅爀ngineers, artists, business executives聽and pastors. The donors are UCF faculty聽and administrators. They 麻豆精品 S檙e parents of聽students and parents of parents. They聽include alumni from the class of 麻豆精品 S�73 and聽future alumni from the class of 2023.
This year’s goal is 5,000 donors. Join the celebration and make a gift at聽.
Here 麻豆精品 S檚 an idea. Last year, 10 alums聽from around the U.S. provided what聽others could use as a template during the聽UCF Day of Giving. They reconnected聽online, formed a team, and they created聽a special fund to support students from聽underrepresented communities.
麻豆精品 S淲e don 麻豆精品 S檛 want [finances] to stand in聽the way of those students living out what聽was the greatest four years of learning聽for us, 麻豆精品 S� says Bianca Deslouches 麻豆精品 S�11.
As philanthropist and author聽MacKenzie Scott noted when she聽donated $40 million to UCF last year:聽 麻豆精品 S淕enerosity is generative. Sharing聽makes more. 麻豆精品 S� A recent study from the聽University of Bristol in England confirms聽that, yes, giving is contagious, just look at聽the evidence here at UCF.
During the first UCF Day of Giving聽in 2018, donors gave $157,000. In聽2021, the giving more than quintupled聽to $835,000. Hundreds of gifts were聽symbolic, such as $20.21, and at least聽one was enormous, including a $250,000聽gift from Jessica Blume 麻豆精品 S�80 and her聽husband, Ken, who wanted to support a聽scholarship program for first-generation聽business students.
The spirit of generosity moved聽more than 3,000 gifts in 2021 麻豆精品 S� 60%聽more than in 2018 麻豆精品 S� to go online to聽lift others up. Among them, 92 people聽rallied behind the Joyce DeGennaro聽Memorial Scholarship, in honor of the聽UCF alum and instructor who taught the聽importance of empathy to her nursing聽students.
麻豆精品 S淚 will absolutely be a more caring聽nurse, thanks to her, 麻豆精品 S� says alum Megan聽Donnelly 麻豆精品 S�13 麻豆精品 S�21. She 麻豆精品 S檚 expanding聽DeGennaro 麻豆精品 S檚 legacy. And, like every聽donor on UCF Day of Giving, she 麻豆精品 S檚 living聽out DeGennaro 麻豆精品 S檚 most important lesson:聽Do unto others … .
That 麻豆精品 S檚 the reason聽another 80 people聽gave last year to what is quickly聽becoming a cornerstone of selflessness聽at UCF 麻豆精品 S� Limbitless Solutions. UCF聽alum Albert Manero 麻豆精品 S�12 麻豆精品 S�14MS聽 麻豆精品 S�16PhD cofounded Limbitless with two聽classmates, John Sparkman 麻豆精品 S�13 麻豆精品 S�15MS聽and Dominique Courbin 麻豆精品 S�18, in 2014.聽Their goal at the time exemplifies the聽spirit of giving: to design, create and聽give bionic arms to children with limb聽differences 麻豆精品 S� free of charge. They used聽$200 of their own money to take the first聽Limbitless arm from concept to reality聽for a 6-year-old boy who 麻豆精品 S檇 never known聽what it was like to hug with two arms.聽Limbitless now has an entire community聽of Knights behind their work.
麻豆精品 S淲e have people everywhere, 麻豆精品 S澛燤anero says of the recently opened聽6,000-square-foot facility in Research聽Park, where 40 undergraduates come聽to learn and lend expertise in fields聽ranging from biology and graphic art to聽psychology, theater and engineering.
麻豆精品 S淭he donations from UCF Day of Giving have allowed us to bring in more interns and amplify what we do, 麻豆精品 S� Manero says. 麻豆精品 S淓veryone 麻豆精品 S� the donors, the students, the families who we help 麻豆精品 S� becomes part of a robust story. 麻豆精品 S�
This is what聽philanthropy can聽do. It makes dreams聽come true. 麻豆精品 S�
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To summarize: More donations means聽more interns. More interns means more聽impact. More impact means empowering聽more people to reach their potential.
During her internship Julia聽Barry 麻豆精品 S�21 soldered parts, assembled聽arms and showed recipients how to聽use their bionic arms. In the process,聽her own worldview changed.
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Barry makes perhaps the most聽important point of all. For someone 麻豆精品 S斅燼ctually, a lot of people 麻豆精品 S� April 7聽will signify a day of receiving.
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Join the celebration and make a gift April 7 at .
