Online is where to contribute when Give Day Tampa Bay returns May 2

For the fourth year in a row, Give Day Tampa Bay is opening a 24-hour online window for donating to more than 500 local nonprofits.

Last year, more than $2 million was raised during the event, helping 595 nonprofit organizations, said Wilma Norton, a vice president with the Community Foundation of Tampa Bay. Give Day is a national observance with about 55 cities participating.

This year, the event is May 2. The goal is to raise as much money as last year or more, but Norton's focus is on gaining more participants.

"We want to raise money, but also raise awareness about what work nonprofits do," said Norton, whose Community Foundation was created 27 years ago in Tampa and matches donors to other nonprofits in the area. "We want to bring new supporters to nonprofits."

The minimum Give Day donation last year was $25 but this year, the amount has dropped to $5 so more people can take part.

"In order to be philanthropic, you don't have to have a lot of money," Norton said. "Give Day shows that if enough people donated $5, they can make a big impact."

The giving is all done online, at givedaytampabay.razoo.com. Donors who visit the site are welcomed by a plea from Joe Maddon, manager of the world champion Chicago Cubs, who developed ties to the Tampa Bay area as former manager of the Rays.

But some nonprofits are taking it to the streets, too.

The NOMAD Art Bus Project, an organization that helps provide immersive art experiences, is driving in a caravan throughout the Tampa Bay area with five other organizations.

"Rather than sitting back and watching donations come in, we're going to be out on the streets doing what we love to do," Carrie Boucher, founder of the project, said in an email.

The caravan, called Good Moves, includes Bess the Book Bus, the Bluebird Books Bus, Boards for Bros, Giving Tree Music and St. Pete Women's Collective. They'll make several stops throughout Tampa and St. Pete, three of them open to the public.

Said Boucher, "Donors will see the immediate impact of their generosity."