Four local nonprofits, including one that operates in West Hartford, advance to the ‘Philanthropic Four.’

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Connecticut nonprofit organizations have raised $109,786 in the competitive fundraising tournament Brackets for Good, and four nonprofits – Cove Center for Grieving Children, The First Tee of Connecticut, Hartford City Mission, and Community Mental Health Affiliates – advance to the “Philanthropic Four” as the tournament heads into its final rounds.

The Cove Center for Grieving Children, which provides family-based peer-support groups for children during a 20-week program that runs from September through June, holds its sessions at each of seven Cove sites. Community locations include West Hartford as well as Guilford, Meriden, New Haven, Stonington, East Hartford, and Easton.

The four nonprofits are in the running for a $10,000 Championship grant.

Participating nonprofits rally enthusiastic donors to out-fundraise their opponents in order to advance. Competing nonprofits keep donations received during tournament play, no matter how many rounds they advance. The field narrows each week. The winning organization receives an additional $10,000 Championship grant, provided by presenting sponsor Stanley Black & Decker.

A total of nine local nonprofit organizations have each raised more than $5,000, including four that have raised more than $10,000 thus far. The online fundraising began with 58 nonprofit organizations last month; the next round concludes on April 3. The championship round begins that night, with a champion determined on April 6.

Thus far, the Connecticut tournament, presented by Stanley Black & Decker, has the fifth largest total amount raised, out of the 13 city or state tournaments that are running this year. Brackets for Good, a statewide competitive fundraising tournament for nonprofit organizations, has helped Connecticut nonprofits raise $109,786 during the past four weeks.

Among the Connecticut nonprofits participating, the top fundraising organizations after four rounds are Community Mental Health Affiliates, $11,553; The First Tee of Connecticut, $10,495; The Mark Twain House & Museum, $10,232; Hartford City Mission, $10,062; Connecticut Humane Society, $6,507; The Children’s Law Center of Connecticut, $5,348; CT Council for Interreligious Understanding, $5,282; Capital City Education Alliance $5,194; Hartford Food System, $5,182; Community Partners in Action, $4,701.

The next round features two head-to-head match-ups among four nonprofit organizations – they all begin the round even; points from the first four rounds do not carry over, although the organization retains the funds raised. The website provides information on the participating nonprofit organizations and the updates on their weekly fundraising efforts.

Online contributions to the Connecticut nonprofit organizations for the Philanthropic Four is now underway, at connecticut.bfg.org. It is the second consecutive year that Community Mental Health Affiliates and Hartford City Mission are among the four finalists in the fundraising competition.

“Partnering with Brackets For Good in Connecticut is a fun and impactful way we can support numerous organizations that are serving the communities, where many of our employees call home,” said Tim Perra, Stanley Black & Decker Senior VP of Public Affairs.

Based on the success in Hartford in its first year in 2017, the local charitable fundraising tournament has expanded to statewide this year. Thirty-three percent of the donations received in 2017 came from first-time donors to the participating organizations.

Thirteen cities and states across the country are conducting Brackets for Good tournaments this year, with the support of local businesses. In addition to Connecticut, states with Brackets for Good nonprofits fundraising tournaments in 2018 are Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, and Minnesota. City tournaments are being held in Atlanta and Dallas, both for the first time this year, as well as in Cincinnati, Denver, Nashville, Indianapolis, Miami, and St. Louis.

Brackets For Good, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization based in Indianapolis, hosts online, bracket-style fundraising tournaments every March in communities around the United States. To date, Brackets For Good has raised more than $6.4 million for charitable nonprofits since 2012 with an average of 30 percent of donations coming from first-time donors to the participating organizations.