Office of Letters and Light Wins 2011 GuideStar-Kimbia Nonprofit Giveaway Contest

GuideStar, the nonprofit industry’s leading resource for nonprofit data, today announced that nonprofit organization Office of Letters and Light is the winner of the prestigious GuideStar-Kimbia Nonprofit Giveaway Contest. As contest winner, Office of Letters and Light (OLL) will receive a $5,000 donation, provided by KIMBIA, which provides nonprofits and other organizations with the most powerful and flexible online fundraising and event management tools. The contest winner was determined by the total number of new reviews submitted on the GuideStar and GreatNonprofits websites during the month of February. The Berkeley, CA-based Office of Letters and Light received well over 2,300 reviews in response to the contest.

Nonprofit reviews can be a key way to increased funding for many nonprofits, as potential donors and grant makers visit the GuideStar and GreatNonprofits websites to view reviews and take the temperature of nonprofit activities and missions and to leverage the donation tools on those sites.

“We’re thrilled for Office of Letters and Light,” says Bob Ottenhoff, CEO of GuideStar. “GuideStar is committed to supporting nonprofits with the information, insight and donor-fostering programs needed to thrive. This contest is especially uplifting for us as it gives voice to those who benefit from the work of nonprofits in all their varied forms and missions. From the reviews submitted in support of OLL, clearly they are helping a lot of people achieve their creative potential. We hope this contest will help to further that mission.”

“Our goal at KIMBIA is to give organizations the power to convert a moment of inspiration into a new relationship. The reviews submitted this last month create thousands of new points of inspiration that will help organizations make connections with new supporters and new donors. We are honored to have the opportunity to support this program and congratulate all the organizations that participated," says Thon Morse, KIMBIA Founder and President.

OLL’s mission is to help children and adults find the inspiration, encouragement, and structure they need to achieve their creative potential. OLL is the organizer of National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), Script Frenzy and the Young Writers Program.

"The GuideStar-KIMBIA contest inspired our participants and volunteers to share amazing stories about the impact our free creative writing programs have had on their lives. And the prize money will help us encourage even more kids, teens, and adults around the world to discover their creative potential in 2011. We’re so moved by the thousands of heartwarming reviews we received from our supporters, and we're so grateful to GuideStar and KIMBIA for making the contest possible," said Chris Baty, Executive Director, the Office of Letters and Light.

Over 1,000 nonprofits registered to participate in the GuideStar-Kimbia Nonprofit Giveaway contest and over 18,000 reviews were submitted as a result. Contest rules stipulated that the nonprofit that garners the most new reviews between February 1 and February 28, 2011 from anyone who is not a paid employee of the organization will receive a $5,000 gift from KIMBIA. Runners up include Turning Point in 2nd place and Snowbird Outfitters in 3rd place, both with over 600 reviews.

Reviews Make a Difference
One inspirational and moving review from one of the participants in Office of Letters and Light’s National Novel Writing Month served in Iraq and inspired an Iraqi woman to take part in the program to complete a novel in one month as well. The reviewer writes, “Tirife wrote 51,204 words that November. By hand, on blank paper, on paper that had stuff printed on it, on magazine pages, on anything she could put ink on. She wrote her story as a novel. In the mountains of Iraq, in the squalor of the horrid building she lived in, with no power, no running water, in a country that had a war ongoing in it, she wrote a novel, and now she stood bouncing on her toes, her eyes barely visible, shining with pride, handing me portions of her book for me to read.”

About the GuideStar-KIMBIA Partnership
GuideStar and KIMBIA have teamed up to offer a full suite of fundraising and event management solutions for nonprofits through the KIMBIA platform. KIMBIA gives cause organizations the power to improve and optimize their existing online fundraising and event efforts. Their platform and their people will help nonprofits create the best solutions for your best intentions. Part of the GuideStar-KIMBIA partnership includes a “Donate Now” widget powered by KIMBIA on every GuideStar nonprofit profile, enabling donors to give instantly without having to navigate away from the profile page.

Learn more about giving power with GuideStar and KIMBIA: http://www2.guidestar.org/rxg/update-nonprofit-report/giving-power.aspx

For more information, please contact Nicole Bestard for GuideStar at (310) 863-0308 or nicoleb(at)gabrielmarketing(dot)com