Liverpool based dance organisation Merseyside Dance Initiative has been tasked with raising £5,000 in pledges before 31st October as part of the national Big Give Christmas Challenge.
The organisation’s Dance and Health programme 'Move on Up' was selected for the scheme by Big Give bosses who were impressed with the organisation’s outreach work, which also won them a MOBO in 2010. Through the Big Give Scheme, MDI will see the initial pledges effectively quadrupled over a series of fundraising challenges as long as they reach each target. However, this will only happen if the organisation reaches its £5k target this week.
The Big Give provides an intelligent way for proactive philanthropists to support charities and projects of interest, and for charities to engage with donors new and old. The Big Give showcases the work of over 8,000 charities. It runs a wide variety of innovative programmes which help charities raise further income whilst enabling donors to increase the impact of their donations. The Big Give is free to all users thanks to the generous support of the Reed Foundation, the charitable arm of Reed Specialist Recruitment.
The first step of MDI’s Challenge is to gather pledges from supporters including private donors and from large organisations. These pledges will then be combined with an equivalent level of funds from an external sponsor, which will be used to double online donations made by the public in the Big Give Christmas Challenge 2011 Week in December. Once the pledges have combined with the sponsor funds and this is matched with donations made online the initial pledge will be worth up to four times its original value.
The money raised will fund MDI’s dance and health activity across Merseyside in 2012. There is a growing body of evidence showing that taking part in dance activity can have a positive impact on people's physical and mental health and wellbeing and we believe that our project will reinforce this view and have a dramatic impact on those taking part. In 2010, MDI partnered Liverpool PCT and Liverpool City Council as Dance Ambassadors for Liverpool's Year of Health and Wellbeing and expanded out health focused work by delivering a range of projects working with all age groups - from around 18 months to 80 years +. The organisation has devised a programme of work aimed at benefiting a diverse range of individuals, groups and communities across the region. Partners and Groups include: Early Years Groups inc. Sure Starts; Alder Hey Hospital; Aintree Hospital; Granby Care Home; Hector Peterson Court; Adults and Children with disabilities; Adults with Dementia and Parkinson’s; Refugees and Asylum Seekers.
In order to continue this great work into 2012 MDI is looking for pledges of money from businesses, trusts, foundations, dance lovers, individuals and philanthropists. Pledges are conditional and depend on MDI securing online donations a second challenge week to be held in December. Any donors will receive recognition both online and in print used to publicise the dance and heath projects. Donors will also be invited to MDI's health events and performances as a special VIP guest.
Rachel Rogers, Project Development Manager at MDI said; "MDI's dance and health programme is so important for the organisation. For us, working with people from diverse communities who don't usually have access to this type of activity is vital - we're aiming to make a difference by working with individuals, groups and communities in places you might not expect to find dance. We know dance makes a difference, whether it's an adult who has dementia, a child with autism or a person recovering from an operation in a hospital bed, you only have to see the smiles on people's faces and feel the energy in the room to know that the work is of real value.
"The Big Give Christmas Challenge gives us a real opportunity to raise money to fund this work by increasing the value of pledges by up to four times as much! It would be fantastic to have the backing of local businesses and communities and for them to know that their pledges will, through our projects make a real difference to people in Merseyside in 2012."
To make a pledge you simply need to fill out a form by 31st October 2011 by clicking on this link.
