Charitable giving rises as Colorado donors step up

This article appears in the Fall 2025 issue of ColoradoBiz under the headline:
Charitable giving grows as donors find more reasons to help

Donations to Colorado nonprofits have increased over the past year, despite economic uncertainty. Current donors are increasing their giving, and new donors are discovering the joy of supporting a cause. Although inflation is driving weak consumer spending, factors ranging from investment gains to cuts in federal funding are inspiring donors to make charitable contributions.

According to Giving USA 2025: The Annual Report on Philanthropy for the Year 2024, giving by individuals, bequests, foundations and corporations to U.S. charities totaled an estimated $592.5 billion in 2024. That was a 6.3% increase in current dollars, and 3.3% growth when adjusted for inflation. The report noted that individual giving, which increased 8.2% (5.1% after inflation), was fueled by the rising stock market and growth in personal income.

Local nonprofit leaders say Colorado residents gave generously. Colorado Gives Foundation, which hosts Colorado Gives Day in December and has a year-round platform for donors to give, saw increases in several types of giving. In 2024, Colorado Gives Day raised $54.87 million, up from nearly $54.23 million in 2023. Year-round giving was also up, totaling $77 million in 2024, compared to $69 million in 2023.

“Nonprofits are actively fundraising, talking to donors and adequately expressing their need,” says Kelly Dunkin, president and CEO of Colorado Gives. “Donors are rising to the occasion.”

The increased giving continues in the current year. Total dollars donated and number of donors for January to June 2025 are higher than for the same period in 2024. Recurring donations play a role, as donors like the convenience and Colorado Gives provides an Incentive Fund that boosts the amount donated. For the 2023 recurring match campaign, 43% of the donations are still active, and for the 2024 recurring match campaign, 70% of the donations are still active.

Colorado Gives has 4,370 nonprofits that received donations in 2024. The category that saw the biggest increase in donations is Public and Societal Benefits, followed by Civil Rights, Social Action and Advocacy and then Environment. “We can’t ignore the news that many nonprofits will lose federal funding, and there is a state budget deficit,” Dunkin says. “Donors are saying, ‘We need these in the community.’”

That’s evident with public media. In July, Congress passed the Rescissions Act of 2025, which eliminated $1.1 billion in funding that had been allocated for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting for fiscal years 2026 and 2027. Listeners and viewers responded by donating to their local public TV and radio stations.

“The federal defunding along partisan lines by Congress has triggered an outpouring of support,” says Amanda Mountain, president and CEO of Rocky Mountain Public Media. “We don’t expect that increase to be permanent, but one-time support by people who want to help.”
Mountain says revenue is up year-over-year from donors at all levels, including monthly sustainers that give an average of $130 per year, and major donors who give $5,000 or more each year. Still, RMPM is keeping an eye on the future and focusing on how to adapt, collaborate and find ways to be more efficient because charitable giving can be unpredictable.

“Everybody wants to have hope in a better future, and each nonprofit is responsible for articulating what that future looks like,” Mountain says. “What remains constant is that Coloradoans are incredibly generous in supporting the causes they care about as volunteers and as donors.”

Another cause Coloradoans care about is animal welfare. Maxfund, the animal shelter that also offers an affordable veterinary clinic, saw a surge in donations in the second quarter after a 20% year-over-year decrease in the first quarter. The boost came when Maxfund was featured as one of the nonprofits in 9News Next with Kyle Clark’s Word of Thanks. “Most of those donors were new,” says Kathy Gaines, MaxFund executive director. “The name recognition was of value.”

Gaines theorizes that the public was also inspired by recent media reports. “The radical increase in veterinary care expense is a nationally known issue, and perhaps people were looking for whom to give funds to mitigate this national crisis.”

Another trend, Gaines says, is that Maxfund has been getting more donations from donor-advised funds. Instead of giving with a credit card or through a bank account, people are opening charitable investment accounts and getting advice from professionals on how to distribute funds.

According to the National Philanthropic Trust, donor-advised funds had a combined $251 billion in assets at the end of 2023. With a payout of around 20%, most of that money remains undistributed. “That’s a hot button,” says John Covert, chief campaign officer for The Action Center, which provides food, clothing and other assistance to individuals and families. “Nationally, there is $251 billion sitting in accounts that is not going to charity.”

Another challenge for nonprofits, Covert says, is new competition for people’s charitable funds. The online platform GoFundMe has raised $40 billion since 2010, according to its website. “For the younger generation, that’s how they do philanthropy,” he says.
The Action Center has seen decreases in regular giving but is finding success with its capital campaign to raise money to renovate a closed Jefferson County school and use it for some services. “We are making progress,” Covert says.

It’s not just individuals who are giving. According to FoundationMark, U.S. foundation assets increased 11.5% to $1.636 trillion during 2024. Foundation assets have grown at a compound annual growth rate of 8.8% during the past five years, due to investment returns and increasing contributions.

Also, according to FoundationMark, foundation giving nationwide increased 6.6% to $105.2 billion. The increase was due to the increased assets, as the payout rate remained steady at around 7%.

“Foundations are stepping up to be creative,” says Noah Atencio, CEO of Philanthropy Colorado. “They are looking at how to support the work of nonprofits that goes beyond dollars.”

Atencio says foundations are building partnerships, having one-on-one meetings with nonprofit leaders and conducting focus groups and surveys. Some are considering using AI to help overwhelmed staff complete tedious or time-consuming tasks.
Next year, nonprofits should benefit from the charitable deduction that was part of the federal One Big Beautiful Act. The deduction, starting in the 2026 tax year, allows individuals to deduct $1,000 and married couples filing jointly $2,000, even if they don’t itemize on their tax returns.

“I’m hopeful we’re going to see an uptick in individual giving,” Atencio says.