Matching Gift Fund

WBAA Membership - Matching Gift Fund
During our fund drives, some listeners enjoy giving their financial support to WBAA in a way that also encourages others to give. These listeners contribute to our Matching Gift Fund. Money in the Matching Gift Fund is used to encourage listeners to respond to a series of challenges issued throughout the fund drive.

How does the Matching Gift process work?
Our Development Director solicits verbal commitments to our Matching Gift Fund.  Also, some listeners approach before or during the drive and offer to make put up matching gifts.  It is also possible that a member returning their gift via mail can participate in the Matching Gift Fund.  No money is used for WBAA’s Matching Gift Fund without donor permission.  These dollars are not added to our tally of the goal, or the gift is not processed, until some sort of challenge is met which is designed to encourage other listeners to make a donation. You can participate in the Matching Gift Fund program as an individual, group, organization, or business. We can mention your name during any challenge involving your Matching Gift or you may choose to remain anonymous.  Many times we pool members gifts from the Matching Gift Fund in order to leverage the power of higher dollar challenges.

What are Matching Gift Challenges during a WBAA Fund Drive?
The challenges can be issued in a few different ways.  For example, we can challenge listeners to support our station during a specific time frame. “When we receive 10 pledges between 3-4 this afternoon, then we'll add an additional $1,000 from John Doe.” We can also issue a matching dollar-for-dollar challenge to our listeners. “John Doe will give $1 for every $1 dollars you give until we reach his $1,000 gift, providing total support of $2,000 for WBAA.”  It is also possible that our challenges could be a certain number of new donors, certain dollar amounts, etc. The objective is to encourage listeners to become supporters and our Matching Gift Fund allows current members to challenge their listening peers.  The reward for meeting the challenge is that we count the amount from the Matching Gift Fund into the total.  As such, the more challenges that are offered and met, the faster the total for the campaign is reached, and the shorter that WBAA’s Fund Drives on-air will be.

What happens to gifts in the Matching Gift Fund if a challenge is not met?
If the requirements of a specific challenge are not met, we are not able to add the Matching Gift into the fund drive total at that time.  Since the Matching Gift would not be added into the total, those dollars remain in the Matching Gift Fund where they become available again for future challenges.  Challenges will continue to be issued throughout the fund drive until the money available in the Matching Gift Fund is fully expended.
(Note:  This occurs unless WBAA is otherwise directed by the donor that makes a gift to the Matching Gift Fund.  Those donors that ask for their gift to only be extended once have no obligation to make the gift if the challenge is not met.)

How may I participate in WBAA’s Matching Gift Fund?   
Please contact WBAA's Development Director, Sally Lutes, by calling 765-496-7794 or via email lutess@purdue.edu to discuss how you can participate. There are many creative and different ways we can work with you to put together a challenge using contributions from the Matching Gift Fund, depending on your wishes.   

Thank you for supporting WBAA Public Radio!