2021 Give Orange tallies more gifts and donations to support OSU

Wednesday, August 25, 2021

Media Contact: Mack Burke | Editorial Coordinator | 405-744-5540 | editor@okstate.edu

1,890 minutes leads to raising more than $1.2 million

Give Orange, OSU’s annual day-of-giving event, had a record-setting return in 2021.

On April 6-7, the Cowboy family gave more gifts and donated more money than in the previous three Give Orange events, nearly tripling
what was raised in 2019 with more than $1.2 million in total donations.

Benefactors from all 50 states donated 2,262 gifts to support students, programs, scholarships, facilities and faculty. Of those gifts, 307 were first-time donations to Oklahoma State University.

Donors, like Gina and Tucker Bridwell and Jim and Judy Gardner, provided matching funds and challenges to incentivize others to give.

The two couples worked together to create a challenge gift for the Educating Forward initiative, which helps future teachers begin their careers debt-free. Their challenge gave $50,000 in additional support once 100 gifts were made to Educating Forward.

“I often say, and truly believe, that a gift to the College of Education and Human Sciences is a gift to the entire state,” Gina Bridwell said. “Good teachers matter and are beneficial to every segment of society. Great teachers change lives.”

Jim and Judy Gardner both made careers as teachers. They said education — now and in the future — will be more important than any time in history. Their match was an opportunity to inspire others to support future educators. The challenge was completed in just over 24 hours. The speed at which their matching gift was unlocked surprised the Bridwells, but they were elated and impressed to see how they were able to help support future generations of Oklahoma educators.

“We were so excited and a little surprised at how quickly the matching challenge was completed,” she said. “Tucker and I were very impressed with yet another creative and inspiring opportunity to give.”

The Gardners shared their excitement. “We watched the numbers climb toward 100 donors. Some supporters sent messages encouraging others to give and complete the 100- donor goal,” Jim Gardner said. “We were so glad the goal was met and elated when a new record for contributions for the College of Education and Human Sciences was achieved.”

In total, 2021 Give Orange included 39 donor issued matching gifts and challenges that added more than $172,000 in donations.

“This is the best way to increase donations,” Jim said. “Many supporters will contribute even a small amount to reach a goal. We are so happy we could join Gina and Tucker Bridwell to make the $50,000 challenge a success!”

Matching gifts offer a greater impact to a gift of any size, Gina said.

“The thought of doubling your gift is irresistible and gets the attention of donors who might not have realized that they could be a part of
something this important,” she said.

Matching challenges also inspire friendly competition. Give Orange provided real-time updates to the College Leaderboard, which tracked how much support had been contributed to each college. The top three received bonus gifts and earned bragging rights over the other colleges.

College Leaderboard Results:
College of Education and Human Sciences – 270 gifts
College of Arts and Sciences – 204 gifts
Ferguson College of Agriculture – 166 gifts

“Give Orange is always such a great opportunity to show the impact every member of the Cowboy family can have,” said OSU Foundation President Blaire Atkinson. “And our matching gifts offer the chance for them to see their gift magnified. We are so thankful for everyone who took part in Give Orange and made it such an incredible success.”

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Photos By: OSU Foundation

Story By: Kyle Stringer | STATE Magazine