Challenge kicks off tonight with chili cook-off

Two weeks into the GoodGiving Guide Challenge, Clark County nonprofits have raised more than $80,000 in donations.

Through the annual online giving campaign, 18 local nonprofits and 120 from central Kentucky will have just more than a month to garner donations. The challenge began Nov. 28 and ends Dec. 31 at 11:59 p.m.

Now in its seventh year, the challenge is a partnership between Blue Grass Community Foundation and Smiley Pete Publishing.

Donations are accepted online at bggives.org, where nonprofit profiles are available and donations are tracked throughout the challenge.

Donation totals at press time Monday were:

— Bluegrass Community and Technical College Winchester-Clark County campus: $4,252

— Partners in Education: $11,534

— Rowland Arts Center: $1,198

— Habitat for Humanity of Madison and Clark Counties: $3,752

— STRIDE: $10,280

— St. Agatha Academy: $11,860

— Clark County Community Services: $6,145

— Holly Rood: $1,596

— Winchester-Clark County Farmers’ Market: $914

— Clark County Homeless Coalition: $7,760

— New Beginnings of Winchester: $6,707

— Leeds Center for the Arts: $3,333

— Hospice East: $594

— Rose Mary C. Brooks Place: $3,919

— L.I.F.E. for Pets: $1,023

— Friends of Hemp: $1,635

— Bluegrass Heritage Museum: $3,223

— Winchester Youth Soccer League: $406

As of Monday at 6 p.m., Clark County nonprofits had raised $80,131 collectively, landing three local nonprofits on the Top 10 challenge-wide leaderboard — St. Agatha Academy was fifth, followed by Partners In Education at sixth and STRIDE at 10th.

Also on the headboards were Clark County Homeless Coalition at 16th, New Beginnings at 19th and Clark County Community Services at 22nd.

Overall, the 120 participating organizations have raised more than $380,000.

Last year, Clark County nonprofits raised more than $215,000 collectively through the challenge, approximately $60,000 more than was raised in 2015. A dozen local organizations participated in the 2016 challenge.

This year, the Clark County Community Foundation will once again provide a dollar-for-dollar match up to $10,000 for each participating non-profit. So far, St. Agatha Academy, Partners in Education and STRIDE has earned the full match.

In addition to receiving contributions from donors, nonprofits will also have the opportunity to compete for $5,000 endowment prizes made possible by BGCF and other donors.

Clark County nonprofits will kickoff the challenge today with the second annual GoodGiving Challenge Chili Cook-off presented by the Clark County Community Foundation.

The cook-off will be from 5 to 7 p.m. at the Clark County Extension Office. It is free for visitors, who also receive $1 to donate to the nonprofit of their choice.

Nonprofits will be paired with local restaurants to prepare chili, which will be voted on by guests. First-, second- and third-place nonprofits will will prizes of $250, $100 and $50, respectively. For more information about the cook-off, contact Halee Cunningham at halee@bgcf.org.

To learn about area nonprofits or donate, visit bggives.org.