The final week of the year can provide a big financial boost for nonprofits, as donors consider tax-deductible donations before time runs out. 

“This is really a time that most people are thinking about giving back in one way or the other,” said Cristine Nardi, executive director of the Center for Nonprofit Excellence in an interview on Charlottesville Right Now. “Sometimes it’s donations and sometimes it’s volunteering with family. Sometimes it’s providing other kinds of support, but it’s a great time of the year to think about how you can help your community.”

Nardi said anyone hoping to find a nonprofit that aligns with their interests and values can visit reimaginecva.org, a website hosted by the local United Way.  

“You can find out not just about the nonprofits that have been around for a long time, but also emerging nonprofits that are addressing emerging needs within their own local communities,” said Nardi.

CNE is itself a nonprofit that exists to support other nonprofits in the Central Virginia region.

“We do leadership development for emerging and existing leaders within the sector to help support them to be strong employees of nonprofits and we also do consulting and provide technical support, so you can think of us like a nonprofit help desk,” she said.

This year, CNE conducted a Virginia nonprofit sector survey that discussed the scope of the nonprofit sector and also gave information about what nonprofit needs were the most timely. 

The data shows that Virginia has over 25,000 nonprofits and employ six to eight percent of people across the state, making it one of the top three industries. Nardi workforce shortages are one of the greatest challenges for nonprofits, and ensuring they have sufficient funding helps address that issue.

She said there are multiple reasons people donate throughout the year.

“One is because you really want to be personally involved in bettering our community and are passionate about nonprofits that do a variety of work,” she said. “The second is because you can actually get a tax advantage for doing it as well.”