NonProfit NewsPod: Impact 100 Hits $500,000 Milestone!

Jeff Holden: [00:00:00] Welcome to this nonprofit podcast, NewsPod, where we amplify the voices of nonprofit leaders and their organizations making differences in their communities. I'm joined by Sarina Paulson, president of Impact100, US Bank's Tim McGinnis, senior vice president, managing director for Northern California, and Jacqui Schinnerer, senior vice president, Institutional Client Group, Northern California, to share some incredible news regarding the Impact100 award grants this year.

Sarina, you recently held what's called the big reveal, and that's where you share the status of the membership and the expected total for the grants to be awarded by the organization for the year. It's always a nail-biting moment, and it's a lot of anxiety as the grants have grown every year for the past three years of your existence.

And last year's number exceeded [00:01:00] $450,000, if I'm not mistaken, correct? That's right. That's just such an incredible number. Right, of course, all that would mean that the goals would be set higher and the expectations a little higher for the next year, and here we are into the fourth year, and I know we were really all hoping to see that 500,000 or half a million dollar number, but it didn't just quite make it.

Sarina Paulsen: Where did you end up the night of the big reveal? Sure. So thanks, Jeff, for having, for having us. We ended up with 413 members, which we were really excited about. Interesting fact in talking to global, most chapters on their fourth year, which this is, uh, our fourth year, usually have a slight regression in terms of membership.

So seeing even that, you know, growth at all was a huge success for us. Well, and what an accomplishment too, and, and one to be commended. And I love that it's Sacramento. We get to take a little pride in that. We sure do. This is where the membership kicked in and said, [00:02:00] "You know, we're, we're a little bit short."

Jeff Holden: And, uh, what was that actual number again? We were striving... We were at 413,000, and we were striving for 500,000. Okay. So as time goes on, I know that membership actually stepped up, and they said, "Hey, that's, that's not good enough. We've gotta do a little bit better. Maybe we can find some extra money through all of our efforts to push at the 11th hour to get us closer to, if not accomplish that half a million dollars."

And, and by the way, these are not small grants. They are $100,000 grants to each of the organizations, and it's encompassing five categories, correct? We do have five categories, and we'll be announcing here this next month exactly how we will go about awarding those five $100,000 grants. But as you mentioned, Jeff, that our membership is so passionate about this- And we're very excited about working towards that [00:03:00] 500,000.

So the first step was the Match Me campaign. And Sarina, d- do you have the categories there for us to, to know what they are? Sure. So we have health and wellness, education, environment, family, and arts and culture. Okay. And a nonprofit in each of those categories, when they're awarded as the winner, would receive the $100,000 grant, correct?

Well, that's to be determined. The board will be voting on that next month and how that is going to shake out, but we will be awarding five $100,000 grants. Which is just awesome. So let's, let's address how we got there. So over the course of, of the next few days, I think everybody engaged, and at some point we were sitting somewhere in the neighborhood of, was it 473,000, I think it was?

Sarina Paulsen: That's right. So [00:04:00] we had one of our members, this is her second year, Elke Von Schlosser, who challenged our membership to a Match Me campaign. And so the evening of the big reveal, we raised about $60,000 just from the members present and some that weren't able to attend. So we got to that $473,000 number from, from that effort alone.

Jeff Holden: And I think in many cases, a lot of people would've said, "Woo-hoo, man. That's great. We got... We just got so close. It was, it... Good enough, let's go." But not you guys. Everybody continued, and I know there were a couple of angels of sorts that came around, one being Jonelle and Teresa Allison with New York Life, and we have Tim and Jacqui on from US Bank right now to share what it was that moved them to say, you know, "We're, we're gonna help you get to that, that final hurdle to make it to the half a million dollars, to $500,000."

Jacqui Schinnerer: Tim, Jacqui, what was it that you saw in the [00:05:00] organization that moved you to make that final contribution? Tim, if you don't mind, I'll, I'll jump in on this. So I was invited to their most recent reveal by Jeannie Reeves. She's a great friend and supporter of the organization, and she said, "You know, Jacqui, you have, you have to come with me to, as a guest."

And what I was absolutely shocked by was the amount of people that were there that contributed, all the nonprofits that had, um, applied, and the organization is so new. So where I was, where I was just really moved was the amount of people and women who showed up To, you know, take their checkbook out and write a check.

And collectively, right, sometimes we think that, like, a small... maybe a, a donation of our own doesn't equate to [00:06:00] big dollars, but these winners walked away with very substantial checks that are, are really gonna be able to help them with their, with their initiatives and the things that they're trying to do to better the Sacramento community.

I'm a born and raised native person of Sacramento, so it was really exciting to see it just in the short amount of time that the people who've been at Impact100 have, have done this. So it's just... It was, it was pretty incredible. And so I brought in Tim and several other people from our organization of, you know, how can we support the, this organization and the great work that, that they're doing.

So that was really how we... We didn't even really know about it, and that just goes to show you how, how much they're doing in such a quick time and to have, um, such a, such a great impact. And on a side note, I've a, a great friend of mine, she's a client. [00:07:00] She had mentioned that she was one of the-- I think she got the last largest grant, which was over $50,000, and she was on the board and talking about what a huge difference that made and how passionate she was about this nonprofit that she was involved with.

So I think the whole idea, collectively, we can do really big things together. You know, and to your point about the benefit to the nonprofits, these are, these are not just grants. These are game-changing grants for so many of them, especially the smaller nonprofits. And in many cases, they're mission-sustaining grants where if it wasn't for the grant, they w-wouldn't know where they were-- they don't necessarily know where they would be in two or three years, and this gives them that impetus to continue to grow and do the good that they do.

Tim McGinnis: Tim, how about you? You know, just kinda first echoing Jacqui's comments, I mean, you know, full disclosure, I, um, wasn't really aware of the organization until last year. And as we kinda got towards year-end, we were, um, as a leadership team across the greater Sacramento region, kinda looking into [00:08:00] 2026, you know, where were we going to contribute, where could we pour into, where we would see, you know, some, some significant progress.

And, and Jacqui, you know, brought the organization to some of us who were, who were looking at 2026. And, you know, we're, we're fortunate in, in two parts, and this is what I was kinda sharing with Sarina a couple weeks ago in particular was, you know, number one, US Bank in general, you know, we, we've always had a strong community affairs organization, and we've always really poured into the communities, you know, across the footprint.

But within the last couple of years, and really in the last, like, 18 months, the greater Sacramento region has become a bigger priority for the organization. You know, seeing the opportunity that's here, the community efforts, you know, the growth efforts that this, this region can be from a business standpoint, so that was point one.

But point two, you know, a little bit kind of I'm gonna call it selfish into our broader wealth management division, the, the Women in Wealth has been a, a focal point for us for the last few years, uh, across the [00:09:00] California region especially. And so we've historically, you know, we've held events, we've done education seminars, we've done networking events, you know, trying to connect kind of the wealth community at all levels, in particular in, in, into the, to the female dynamic.

And this was one of those opportunities where... And we were very fortunate to, to be, to able to kind of pass that blessing on again to another organization who is doing so much, you know, again, in the greater Sacramento community and can provide, you know, education and resources to some organizations that just, they, they wouldn't have it without it.

Sarina Paulsen: So it really was, uh, it was, it was already kind of a no-brainer to start, and then as we, you know, found out that as they were getting closer and closer, it was a no-brainer just to continue that, that contribution and that partnership. Well, I, I applaud you for the recognition and for the understanding that in its novelty, again, only four years old, not that many people [00:10:00] recognizing it, but to see the significance of the impact that they've made over the course of time.

Jeff Holden: And Sarina, I don't remember what the aggregate number now is over the four years, but I think you've mentioned it. Do you know it off the top of your head? Well, going into this year, we had awarded about nine hundred, close to nine hundred and fifty thousand, so we're just shy of a million. And so this will take us over that, you know, close to a million and a half dollars in four years' time that will be injected into the nonprofit community in our, in our region.

That's just simply an astounding number. And again, compliments to US Bank for recognizing the opportunity that it presents, especially with your Women in Wealth program. I don't think there could be a better marriage. Accomplishing what you guys have done in only four years i-is, is just amazing, and to think that what's going to be happening as we continue forward and the significance and the recognition by major organizations in town, and now we have US Bank and New York Life involved, [00:11:00] I, I can't thank you all enough.

Tim, Jacqui, US Bank, thanks for making that final contribution that tipped it to that half a million dollar mark. Sarina, congratulations to you and the membership of Impact One Hundred on such a significant milestone, and I know you're getting recognition across the country for it. I can't wait ret- I can't wait to report in a later news pod the beneficiaries of the contributions, the beneficiaries of, beneficiaries of the grants.

You are all simply amazing. How can we learn a little bit more about each of your organizations? Yeah, obviously the simple one is, is our, the main website at usbank.com. You can get to, you know, basically any organization within there. But, you know, I would, I would really- Put more of an emphasis on kind of that local community.

I think between offices and retail branches, there's, there's so many, there's hundreds of us in the community volunteering as well as working in our regular offices. You know, if it's, uh, if it's information, you can find it online, again, [00:12:00] usbank.com, and, and, and pick a dropdown. But, you know, I would encourage you, I would encourage, you know, listeners and others in our organization, you know, look for people out in the community.

Jacqui Schinnerer: You know, Jacqui and her peers are always out at events, again, volunteering, spending time trying to get to know the community members and, and other, what we would kinda say referral partners and ways to support, you know, so many organizations with the community. Um, Jacqui, anything you would add? Yeah, I mean, I think a lot of this is just about relationships, right?

And one of the things, I've worked in a lot of different markets even though I, I'm born and raised in Sacramento, so I have a great love for Sacramento and all the amazing things that it's, that it's been doing and all the growth that's been happening here. But, you know, I think had it not been a relationship that I had with a, you know, maybe a viewed community leader here, I would've never known, right?

And so I think it's up to us to build those relationships, spread the good word, get other people involved because it is, [00:13:00] it is truly impressive what this organization has done, and I mean over a million dollars in four years. I mean, that's just, just with the, the generosity of, of all the, the people here in the Sacramento community that wanna support the community that we're part of.

Sarina Paulsen: So I would en- I would encourage, you know, you to build those relationships. And like Tim said, there's a lot of folks that work for US Bank here, and feel free to, feel free to reach out to any of us. And Sarina for Impact 100? Yes, and before I do that, I just once again wanna thank Tim and Jacqui and US Bank and Joe Neal and Theresa.

You know, it, as Jacqui said, relationship building, even between individuals and organ- and corporations is so important because when we come together, that's how we can do remarkable things. And with funding shortages being a real thing for organizations, you know, it's even more critical that we do things like this so we can [00:14:00] help our neighbors in need.

I also just wanna make sure that I, that I once again call and thank our member, Elke von Schlosser, who really started the idea of the Match Me campaign. She has just such a generous heart and really has, you know, ignited that philanthropic spirit in all of us to wanna do more and to, to give more. And she even brought her friend, Judy Cerise, who made a contribution to help us get to The $500,000 mark, so we wanna thank them also.

But to learn more about Impact 100, absolutely go to our website, impact100greatersacramento.org. There's a number of ways that you can reach us. You can sign up for our newsletter at the bottom of our, of our webpage so you can stay involved, and I know, Jeff, you mentioned hearing about who we award these grants to, and we're knee-deep in that process of determining the semifinalists right now.

Jeff Holden: So that's a great way to stay in the know, is signing up for our newsletters. Well, thank you all again for [00:15:00] everything you're doing for the community, and we are looking forward to that, uh, that grant award program. Yep. Can't wait. Thank you, Jeff. Thanks for listening to this Nonprofit Podcast NewsPod. If you'd like to learn more about Impact 100, New York Life, or US Bank, you'll find the links to their websites in the show notes.

If you like what you heard, please follow us, give us a positive review, and subscribe. We appreciate all these organizations do for our community.