Jamestown Giving Hearts Day Collaborative Growing Ahead of Feb. 12 Fundraiser

The Jamestown Giving Hearts Day Collaborative has expanded to 26 local nonprofits as the community prepares for the regionwide 24-hour online fundraising event set for Feb. 12. Organizers say this local growth comes as Giving Hearts Day, co-hosted by Dakota Medical Foundation and Impact Foundation, continues to be the region’s largest day of giving and a major source of funding for community programs.

Since the program began in 2008, the Giving Hearts Day website reports the campaign has raised $226 million in total, including more than $31 million in 2025. Organizers report more than 600 charities are participating this year, and early giving has already opened in advance of the event. Jamestown Regional Medical Center’s foundation says early giving opens January 12 and that gifts can be made through 11:59 pm on February 12. JRMC also emphasizes that “Every contribution to JRMC strengthens meaningful patient needs and helps us continue providing exceptional healthcare close to home.” JRMC lists specific matches for 2026 including Duane Enzminger, Stoudt, Thundering Saints and Unison Bank and notes this year’s fundraising will “help us finish our Hugs® and Kisses® campaign. Donations will update the infant protection system in our Family BirthPlace, offering added safety and peace of mind for the smallest patients we serve and the families who rely on us during life’s most important moments.” JRMC accepts gifts by mail to JRMC Foundation, 2422 20th Street SW, Jamestown, ND 58401; in person at the Gift Shoppe or Foundation office; or by calling (701) 952-4880.

Locally, collaborative leaders say the push is as much about awareness as it is about dollars. “Giving Hearts Day is still not that well known in Jamestown,” she said. “She estimates that 50% to 60% of Jamestown don't know what Giving Hearts Day is about.” “So our overall goal is just to remind people that Giving Hearts Day is an important day of online giving and it really has a massive impact on nonprofits,” Kapp said. To strengthen donor leverage, Annie Hancock, secretary of the Jamestown GHD Collaborative and development director of SMP Health - Ave Maria, said, “All of the nonprofits have raised their own matching funds for the event, with a minimum of $3,000,” while Mindi Schmitz, past chair of the collaborative and executive director of The Arts Center, noted “close to 100% of the money raised during Giving Hearts Day for the local nonprofits stays in the community.” Schmitz added the collaborative “has raised more money each year than the year before.”

The Jamestown Collaborative has focused on low-cost, local marketing to reach residents, placing flyers on pizza boxes, coffee sleeves and table tents in restaurants and coffee shops, buying billboards and securing donated digital billboard or newsletter space from businesses. Service clubs have welcomed speakers to explain Giving Hearts Day and participating nonprofits say the collaborative is another way to get their name out to potential donors.

Institutions across Jamestown are tailoring campaigns for specific projects. The University of Jamestown stresses that “Your donation on Giving Hearts Day allows us to support our students to the fullest extent possible as all proceeds benefit student scholarships.” Local groups have also used social platforms to highlight noncash giving; an Instagram post excerpted by organizers said, “Gifts given on Giving Hearts Day have allowed us to continue our mission, by providing the best gymnastic instruction along with a positive and safe environment.”

For Jamestown residents, the practical takeaways are clear: early giving is open, donations can be made through the Giving Hearts Day online platform or directly to local charity avenues such as JRMC by mail, phone or in person, and many local nonprofits will match donations with at least $3,000 in raised match funds. “That’s an ‘incredible goal’ to surpass,” Kapp said, noting more nonprofits in North Dakota are participating in Giving Hearts Day. As Feb. 12 approaches, the collaborative’s push to raise awareness and mobilize match funds will determine how much of that day’s regionwide generosity stays in Stutsman County to support health care, scholarships, the arts and other community services.