Giving Hearts Day raises $26 million dollars for over 560 charities in 16th annual day of community generosity

(Fargo, ND) -- The 16th annual Giving Hearts Day is sharing its results with the community following the second largest year for donations in the event's history.

Giving Hearts Day, a day of giving for hundreds of charities across the Upper Midwest, received over $26,046,73055 in donations from 41,737 donors. This is in addition to more than 1,717 people pledging volunteer hours and 101 goods being given to more than 560 charities. Pat Traynor, CEO of Dakota Medical Foundation and co-sponsor of Giving Hearts Day, says amount of good that can be done with the nearly 26 million dollars will absolutely change lives. 

"At the end of the day these charities are impacting health and quality of life all across this region, "said Traynor in an exclusive interview with WDAY Radio, "So think about all of the good that they're going to be capable of doing now that they otherwise wouldn't be because of this generosity."

Traynor says this time of year often makes up approximately 50% or more of the annual budget for the charities that participate in the annual day of giving, and says lessons learned over the years are preparing them for a bigger and better event for 2024. Traynor says he wants to reach out to the smaller communities and focus on a "much more in depth ground game" to help build support for the day. However, he still shares his gratitude with the community who donates every year, and extends his thanks to those who participated. 

"I would just say that we are grateful, "said Traynor, "Never forget that we live in the most generous region on the planet and that we need to thank people that stood up and said 'You know what, I'm gunna give, I'm going to volunteer, im going to drop off a good, or all three.' We are grateful for all of those people"

You can see the final donation totals for this year's Giving Hearts Day by clicking here. You can also read additional reporting on Giving Hearts Day by clicking here.