Record NFP Crowdfunding Campaign
One of Australia’s first Not for Profit crowdfunding platforms, mycause, says it has delivered the biggest crowdfunding campaign for a personal cause in Australia.
mycause, which has raised more than $30million for charity since it started in 2007, says it has raised almost $1million for Sydney cancer patient and mother of three Alex Piper, and her husband Matt who is blind in the campaign called All in For Alex.
Alex Piper is a 41-year-old mother of three children aged 13, 10 and five-years-old. In October 2010 she was diagnosed with breast cancer and after chemotherapy and a mastectomy it was thought she was in remission.
The cancer returned recently and the young mother now also has stage four stomach cancer. Her husband, Matt, is also legally blind. He lost his sight two years after they were married and has never seen his children.
The campaign is live at mycause.com.au/allinforalex and the total currently stands at $981,517.
mycause said that over 10,700 people have donated since late October 2014, smashing the original target of $250,000.
“Despite their troubles they have worked jobs as much as they can to support their children. Given Alex’s recent struggles and Matt’s continual disability their friends thought it time they get some help,” mycause CEO and Founder, Tania Burstin said.
“So they turned to crowd funding on mycause.com.au”
The story of Alex and Matt Piper aired on a national current affairs program earlier this month and Burstin said it has become the biggest crowd funding campaign for a personal cause ever in Australia, while only one bigger personal cause campaign has been found so far in the US. for a sick young child.
A spokesperson for mycause said that before going to air $70,000 had already been raised in 10 days by committed family and friends.
“However the response the campaign received after airing on the popular show was amazing. In the 90 minutes after the story went to air the total had risen by $200,000. Soon it was at $300,000 and rising. In under 24 hours the total had reached more than $500,000,” the spokesperson said.
“In less than 48 hours it passed $700,000. It was an incredible response, unlike anything mycause had seen before.
"We believe that All in For Alex is the biggest ever personal crowdfunding campaign in Australia,” Tania Burstin said.
"The power of the television story and the ease with which people were about to donate through mycause was a big part of this campaign's success.
"mycause is a leader in innovation for crowdfunding personal and charitable causes online."