Big Give: Combined Community Chest event Thursday

McCOOK, Neb. — The Big Give McCook on Thursday, Nov. 9 is nearly here. The giving stations are ready. The power hours are set. And the website, biggivemccook.org, is ready to accept online donations at midnight on Thursday.

But really, what is Big Give McCook? Simply put, Big Give McCook is an opportunity to connect donors to the charitable causes they care about. And the 2017 Big Give McCook has 21 local, non-profit organizations, including the Community Chest, involved this year.

Ultimately, Big Give McCook is also a concentrated way to bring attention to the local non-profit organizations which rely on these donations to operate throughout the year. Community Chest, which is organizing Big Give McCook, hopes to get people excited about helping those non-profit organizations they are most passionate about.

Now in its’ second year, Big Give McCook replaces the annual end-of-the-year campaign usually conducted by Community Chest. Instead, donors will have the ability to donate online at www.biggivemccook.org, where they can designate up to 10 organizations at once from the 21 non-profits involved this year.

Or people will be able to donate in person with a check or cash at “giving stations” set up around McCook. Again, donors can choose to give to one, two or all of the organizations included in the Big Give McCook event.

Giving stations will be available during regular business hours at the following banks, McCook National Bank, Great Western Bank, Horizon Bank, First Central Bank and Pinnacle Bank. Plus, there are giving stations at the YMCA, 5 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Community Hospital, 8 a.m-7 p.m.; and Hillcrest Nursing Home, 8 a.m.-5 p.m.

Additional activities as part of Big Give McCook are:

Prairie Plains CASA Open House, 7 a.m.-3:30 p.m., 322 Norris Ave., Tours of Matthew’s Place and refreshments

YMCA’s Saggy Bottom Boys with Gene Malleck, along with Ginger tenBensel, 6-8 p.m., YMCA lobby

Another important aspect of the Big Give McCook event includes the support from several local businesses through sponsorships and matching grants.

Sponsors for Big Give McCook are McCook National Bank, the Graff Charitable Foundation, Deveny Motors, Parker Hannifin and Great Western Bank.

For more information about the organizations involved in Big Give McCook or a complete list of giving station hours, visit the Big Give website, www.biggivemccook.org, find Big Give McCook on Facebook or contact Lisa Felker and Melissa Stritt at MNB, 308-345-4240.

Community Chest is a sub-account of the McCook Community Foundation Fund, which is an affiliated fund of the Nebraska Community Foundation.