From hundreds of hours of volunteer service to $3.2 million raised in a 30-hour charitable marathon, generosity in Orange County took center stage at the OneOC Spirit of Volunteerism Awards luncheon, where more than 1,000 people gathered at the Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim to salute volunteers for their service to the community.
And right around the time lunch was served to the honorees, the online iheartOC Giving Day campaign ended with a final tally that was nearly double the amount raised by the inaugural Giving Day last year. The funds benefit local nonprofits.
This year marked the 40th anniversary of the Spirit of Volunteerism gathering. As in past years, The Orange County Register was a presenting sponsor, joined by Mazda North American Operations. More than 43,000 volunteers contributed in excess of 1.6 million hours of service last year, said Rob Reindl, board chairman for OneOC.
Under the auspices of the Orange County Community Foundation, 418 nonprofits participated in the countywide Giving Day, using social media, email blasts and special events to reach supporters. The Council on Aging-Orange County saw a tenfold increase in iheartOC Giving Day donations this year, said Lisa Wright Jenkins, president and CEO of the organization. “That’s, like, unbelievable,” Jenkins said.
