Today is the day to start promoting your fundraiser to compete in the official 7 Days to World Give Day Fundraising Competition to win an extra $750 for your fundraising efforts.  Unfortunately, the prize won’t come in a cute little stack of money with a bow on it like this visual display.  (In all seriousness, the GiveForward team will donate $750 directly to the winning fundraising page on May 5th when the winner is announced).

Starting April 28th, the fundraisers that raises the most money throughout the course of 7 full days will win an extra $750 for their fundraiser.  Each day we will post the leaderboard here so you can track the standings of the Top Ten fundraisers.  Even if you’re not always at the number one spot… keep promoting your heart out– there may even be a super secret prize to another lucky fundraiser if we’re really letting the spirit of World Give Day get to our heads *wink*

This is the time to gather your friends and tell the masses!  You only have 7 days to win this competition, so don’t waste any time! Promote your page by asking everyone to help be a part of World Give Day 2011 by giving to your fundraiser and in doing so, helping you win $750.  The more money you raise, the better chance you have at being crowned the King (or Queen) of World Give day 2011!

Winner of the World Give Day Competition

The 7 days leading up to World Give Day were exciting ones as each day it seemed a new leader was in the #1 spot every time we checked the leaderboard.  We were happy to see all the generosity and love that poured out i n honor of World Give Day to all of the deserving fundraisers on the site.

GiveForward is very pleased to announce that the winner of the World Give Day fundraising competition is:

Brian Corbett Recovery Fund

April 18th 2011, Brian Corbett from Fort Lauderdale, FL, was injured in a terrible car accident that unfortunately took the lives of two of his friends.  Brian and two others were lucky to survive, but were seriously injured.  At only 18 years old, Brian is fighting for his life as he suffered  neck and spine injuries and now remains in critical care.  The huge network of support that has come together to help the Corbett family is truly inspiring.

This fundraiser was started by Brian’s cousin, Rob who lives in New York.  Starting this GiveForward page was a way for Rob to organize this community of support even though he was so far away.  This solidifies the idea that distance doesn’t mean you can’t show your love and come together to help a family in need. Congratulations; we send our well wishes and LOTS of positive vibes to the entire Corbett family.

Brian’s fundraiser will be awarded an extra $750 to his page in honor of World Give Day.

Though there are already ample ways to participate in World Give Day, we’re launching a new fundraising contest to satisfy those with competitive tendencies. During the week leading up to World Give Day, the fundraiser that raises the most money will win a $750 contribution from GiveForward.

All public fundraisers on our site are eligible to win the World Give Day Challenge. If you’re rooting for a particular project, be sure to give it that extra boost during the seven days between April 28^th and May 4^th to increase its likelihood of winning. This is a great opportunity to both promote your favorite fundraiser and support World Give Day. With arms sore from our free hugs marathon, we’ll present the victorious fundraiser with its laurel wreath and milk jug on May 5^th.

Also, be sure to join the World Give Day discussion by visiting our blog series or following the hashtag #GiveDay on Twitter. There’s certainly no shortage of ways to contribute to World Give Day, so go forth and smother the universe in acts of giving!

If you have any questions about rules or participation, feel free to contact one of our fundraising coaches at info@GiveForward.com.

Check the updates to the leaderboard every day to see who’s in the top ten!

The NICM/ACMA conference took place this weekend in Orlando, Florida, and GiveForward was excited for the first year attending this amazing event.

For a few days every year, case managers from across the country get together to learn about advancements in the industry, as well as new tools and options available to them, including GiveForward.

The positive response to GiveForward at NICM/ACMA was amazing.  Attendees and vendors alike were excited to learn more about GiveForward and how they could use it to help their patients cover any costs that fall outside of insurance coverage.

GiveForward was equally pumped to get a chance to share our story with case managers including groups from around the country, including Johns Hopkins, M.D. Anderson, and of course Desiree enjoyed chatting with the ladies who came from Yale-New Haven hospital.

In addition to our case manager friends, we enjoyed talking more with fellow vendors like amramp, our neighbors StatAir, and The Kidz Korner at Plantation Nursing & Rehabilitation Center.

A big GiveForward thank you to everyone who made us feel so welcome at our first NICM/ACMA conference.  We look forward to seeing everyone next time!

Two lucky GiveForward fundraisers have competed against hundreds of other projects to fight their way to the final round of the GiveForward March Madness Fundraising Competition to win extra $ for their fundraising efforts! We are so proud to call these two our first March Madness winners, and they are more than deserving of the title

Super Jordan – Winner of $750!

“1 1/2 year old, Jordan, is battling Leukemia. The funds will be used for Jordan’s medical costs & related expenses not covered by insurance.  Jordan’s journey began on 10/24/10, when he was diagnosed with a bacterial bone infection in his leg. A few weeks later, on 11/8, they received the life-shattering news that their precious 16-month-old had leukemia.”

Saving Simon – Winner of $250!

“Simon’s mommy is raising money to help pay for surgery to help give him many more happy, healthy years to share.  Simon has a bladder stone that has become lodged in his urethra. It cannot be dissolved, and must be surgically removed. This is a life-threatening ailment that must be treated as soon as possible.”

GiveForward’s March Madness Fundraising Competition is coming to an exciting finish as the final two fundraisers in each category will duke it out to win the coveted prize money for their fundraising efforts.  They fought their way to the top, and now were are extremely excited to announce the top two fundraisers in our 2011 March Madness competition. (Seriously, the GF staff is really pumped- we filled out our brackets before it began to compete against each other. The prize? A petite lap giraffe.)

The final competitors:

To Lani, With Love VS.  Super Jordan

The final two pet fundraisers:

Emmy’s Chemo Fund VS.  Saving Simon

We’re in our last week of the nail-biting competition that is GiveForward’s
March Madness fundraising competition.  We’re down to the final four contestants that are fighting their way to the Championship round to win extra $$$ for their fundraiser! We now have all new match-ups for the next three days of fundraising before the final round that starts April 2.

We are proud to reveal the superstars that are the FINAL FOUR:

Super Jordan VS.  MatthewRobertHeartfoundation
Emily Stueve Medical Fund VS.   To Lani, With Love

And the FINAL FOUR contestants for the pet bracket:

The Manchas Fund VS.  Emmy’s Chemo Fund
Miracle for baby blue VS.  Saving Simon

Congratulations to our Elite 8 in each category! The finalists have moved onto the next round of competition, getting them closer to a spot in the Final Four to compete for the coveted championship prize $$$!

And now… we are proud to announce the winners of the first round of match-ups who are moving on to the next step.  These finalists will keep competing head to head in hopes of getting to the Final Four: read more…

Today GiveForward co-founder Ethan Austin is speaking at Health 2.0 conference Spring Fling.  Ethan is addressing the conference as part of an elite group of speakers who are tackling the topic of “Making Health Care Cheaper”.

Health 2.0′s “Spring Fling” is a conference that allows attendees to get a peek into the world of innovation in health care.  The event includes discussions on how to use technology to solve health care challenges, introductions to groups who are reshaping the industry and even a code-a-thon!

Ethan will be introducing the audience to how crowdfunding can help offset the costs of medical expenses when health care falls short.  Crowdfunding through GiveForward is the easiest way for people to help a loved one in need who is coping with covering the out-of-pocket expenses associated with a medical crisis.

A big thanks to Health 2.0 for inviting us out!

The brackets are in!  The finalists for the Sweet Sixteen have been finalized and arranged for each category for the March Madness fundraising competition on GiveForward.  Each fundraiser will now compete one on one to earn its way to the final championship to win lots of extra $$$ for their fundraising efforts.  The fundraiser to raise the most money between the dates of each round move onto the next competitor.  See if your favorite fundraiser has qualified for the Sweet Sixteen! Here are the match-ups, make sure you scroll down to see both arms of the bracket: read more…

It’s that time of year, when everyone’s brains turn to brackets.  We aren’t immune here at GiveForward.  That is why we have been super sly and integrated two of our favorite things, brackets and fundraising.

This year we’re holding a March Madness fundraising contest on GiveForward.  It all begins on March 16th.  Between the 16th and March 20th the 16 fundraisers that raise the most money in their category will advance to the second round, or Sweet Sixteen round.

From there, teams will advance in the bracket to the Elite Eight, then the Final Four and the Championship until one champion is left in each category.  Winning will be determined by the fundraiser that raises the most money during the time they are battling it out in their bracket.

Here are the game days:

Everyone: March 17-20

Sweet Sixteen: March 21-24

Elite Eight: March 25-28

Final Four: March 29-April 1

Championship: April 2-April 4

Expect periodic updates as teams knock each other out and move up in the rankings.  Now get out there and play your hearts out!