19-05-2025
Schuylkill Gives announces leaderboard for donations to nonprofits
With a growing number of families depending on Schuylkill Community Action for the free food it provides from its pantries countywide, the organization is increasingly dependent on donations.
The money the group received from the 24-hour fundraiser Schuylkill Gives last week therefore provided a big boost.
Schuylkill Community Action collected $20,455, the top amount raised by the 46 participating nonprofits during the online giving initiative.
Schuylkill Gives, which is run by the Schuylkill Area Community Foundation, is designed to strengthen the Schuylkill County nonprofit community and the many causes they support.
Rounding out the top 10 recipients in terms of dollars donated in Schuylkill were:
2. Ringtown Area Library
3. Orwigsburg Area Free Public Library
4. Hillside SPCA
5. Shenandoah Area Free Public Library
6. Servants to All – My Father's House
7. Red Creek Wildlife Center, Inc.
8. Schuylkill Connects
9. Schuylkill County Historical Society
10. Walk In Art Center
Schuylkill Community Action's donors included one family who volunteers at the pantry and who anonymously gave $20,000 in memory of a loved one, said CEO Dave Young.
That money will help the group to buy more food for those in need and also help cover the expenses of running the truck it uses to pick up food donations, he said.
'We are incredibly grateful,' he said.
Orwigsburg Library Director Claudia Gross said that because libraries rely so much on fundraising, the Schuylkill Gives event is a big help. Her library, for example, only receives 12% of its funding from the state, meaning it must raise another $100,000 each year.
The library collected $8,000 from 128 donors during Schuylkill Gives, which will help greatly with covering costs and supporting the many programs it presents, she said.
'We really appreciate the Schuylkill Area Community Foundation for helping Schuylkill County nonprofits to be seen,' Gross said.
The Ringtown Library raised $13,325 from 225 donors, a number of whom don't even live in Pennsylvania any longer but used to patronize the library and still help support it financially, said library director Tanya Savitsky.
Each year the Schuylkill Gives initiative is important toward helping the library pay its bills, she said.
'Every donation helps,' she said. 'We could not survive without them.'
The website is still accepting donations to the charities that took part and gives information on each of them, allowing visitors to search for nonprofits by category.
The site can be reached at
Donations can also be made anytime directly to the nonprofits through their websites.
