I Live Here I Give Here Presents: Giving Days and Community Response to Amplify Austin Day

Thursday, October 10, 2024
11:30 am - 12:00 pm - Lunch and Networking 
12:00 pm - 1:00 pm - Program 

Location:
Austin Community College Highland Business Center
Room 201
5930 Middle Fiskville Rd, Austin, TX 78752

Session Description: 

Local giving days are utilized throughout the United States to galvanize donors to give and support the nonprofits creating a community safety net. In Austin, Amplify Austin Day started in 2012 and has since raised over $100 million for nonprofits in Central Texas. Amplify Austin Day has been a remarkable success for the community, with organizations small and large utilizing the day in creative ways to achieve various goals. There are also nonprofit organizations in Central Texas that choose not to participate in the giving day. During this AFP meeting, we will hear from the I Live Here I Give Here Executive Director about giving days throughout the United States, as well as the history and results of Amplify Austin Day. We will then hear from a panel of fundraisers about their experiences with Amplify Austin Day. AFP members will have the opportunity to ask questions about Amplify Austin Day from the panelists and the I Live Here I Give Here ED.

Speakers: 

Johanna Moya Fábregas, Ph.D., Con Mi MADRE

Kelenne Blake, Black Mamas ATX

Mark Jackson, Central Texas Food Bank

Piper Stege Nelson, I Live Here I Give Here

Bios: 

Johanna Moya Fábregas, Ph.D., Con Mi MADRE

Dr. Johanna Moya Fábregas received her undergraduate degree in Latin American Studies and French from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and her doctorate in History at Indiana University-Bloomington. The role of Executive Director at Con Mi MADRE brings together Dr. Moya Fábregas’ background and personal mission of empowering Latina students and their families by breaking down barriers to success.  Her professional experience is anchored education, leadership, and mentoring. She has been a professor, editor, project manager, and consultant. Education is one of the biggest values in her family, who moved to the United States in search of opportunities for their daughter. She has significant experience teaching and working with first generation college students in many capacities: student, leader, mentor, and educator. An immigrant herself, Johanna came to the United States at the age of 14 after living in four Latin American countries, and her parents became the biggest advocates for her advanced education. She personally identifies with Con Mi MADRE's mission because she has lived it.

Kelenne Blake, Black Mamas ATX

Kelenne Blake is a health advocate, creative and Blackacademic from Trinidad and Tobago, based in Austin TX. She has been involved with Black Mamas Community Collective, a.k.a Black Mamas ATX in various roles since 2018 and now serves as the Executive Director. As a creative, Kelenne does visual and performance art as well as writing, including poetry and screenwriting. She also considers herself a Blackademic. Kelenne is a former professor at Huston-Tillotson University and a current doctoral student of Public Health at Johns Hopkins University, concentration Health Equity and Social Justice.

Mark Jackson, Central Texas Food Bank

Mark joined the Food Bank in 2010, leading the fundraising, marketing, and volunteer resource efforts of the organization. His team inspires the community to provide resources to nourish our most vulnerable neighbors and allow the Food Bank to grow to meet the need for support in Central Texas. Before joining the Food Bank, he graduated with a BA from the University of Colorado and started his career working in sales and marketing for international sports medicine company Ottobock. Mark transitioned to the non-profit sector to serve as Development Director at Project Transitions, a Food Bank Partner Agency that provides hospice and housing support for individuals living with HIV/AIDS. He has over 10 years of non-profit leadership experience.

Piper Stege Nelson, I Live Here I Give Here

Piper Stege Nelson is a native of Austin, Texas. Prior to joining I Live Here I Give Here, she served as the Chief Public Strategies Officer at SAFE, a nonprofit dedicated to stopping the cycle of violence in Central Texas. There she managed the volunteer, community education, marketing & communications, earned revenue venture, and policy arms of the organization. She recently ran for school board trustee in Austin and lost, but garnered over 10,000 votes. Her past roles include managing corporate partnerships for Michelle Obama’s Let Girls Learn initiative, serving as Deputy Director of Annie’s List, and being the Publisher of The Texas Observer. She has also supported women involved in politics internationally, worked for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and served as legislative director for Texas State Representative Jessica Farrar. In 2021, she was named one of the BBC’s Top 100 Women. After graduating from Carleton College in Minnesota, she was awarded a Fulbright grant, then went on to earn her master’s degree from the LBJ School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin. She recently served on the Austin Commission for Immigrant Affairs and on the Lee Elementary PTA Executive Board, as the Board Chair of AIDS Services of Austin, and on the Austin Council of PTAs. She and her husband just spent a year living with their two kiddos in Granada, Spain, but are so happy to be home in Austin again.