WESTERN MASS. After months of community conversation, donor feedback, and collaborative planning, the Resilient Valley Coalition launched its Match My DAF campaign. The initiative will unlock donor-advised funds (DAFs) and matching gifts to bring resources to local nonprofits facing steep federal funding cuts.Nationally, more than $251 billion is currently sitting in donor-advised funds. These charitable investment accounts let individuals set aside cash, stocks, and other financial gifts for future charitable giving. Resilient Valley, a growing coalition of nonprofits working in farming, conservation, food security, health, and environmental justice, is urging donors that now is the time to put these charitable dollars to good use.
“When the coalition nonprofits came together earlier in the year, many of our budgets had been gutted overnight, and the ripple effects were only beginning,” said Lora Wondolowski, director of Advancement & Communications at the Peace Development Fund. “We knew we couldn’t face this crisis in isolation. Match My DAF is a way for everyone to come together — DAF owners, businesses, individuals, and nonprofits — to move resources now, when they can have the greatest impact.”
To participate in Match My DAF, DAF holders pledge to give at least 10% more than they distributed last year, directing those gifts to nonprofits serving the communities of the three Western Mass. counties. Gifts made between now and May 1, 2026, can be nominated for a dollar-for-dollar match, up to $5,000 per grant. The match awards will be selected through two lottery rounds scheduled for Feb. 2 and May 2, 2026.
The coalition welcomes businesses and individuals without DAFs to participate by contributing directly to the matching fund, which enables local donors’ DAF gifts to be doubled. Nonprofits throughout the region are invited to spread the word among their supporters and encourage DAF holders to nominate grants for the chance to receive matching dollars.
Northampton resident, businessman, and philanthropist Al Griggs has stepped forward to support the campaign. “I’m supporting Match My DAF because our community needs bold, collective action,” he said. “If you have the ability to give, whether through a DAF or directly to the match fund, I encourage you to join me.”
Since its formation earlier this year, Resilient Valley has united organizations that collectively serve tens of thousands of Western Mass. residents. The coalition includes All Farmers, Amherst Survival Center, Cancer Connection, Center for EcoTechnology, Community Involved in Sustaining Agriculture, Grow Food Northampton, Hilltown Land Trust, Hitchcock Center for the Environment, Kestrel Land Trust, Northampton Survival Center, Nuestras Raíces, Peace Development Fund, and Stone Soup Café. While these organizations have organized the campaign, any nonprofit in the Pioneer Valley that conforms to the campaign criteria is eligible for a match.
“The Match My DAF campaign is a powerful way to strengthen the nonprofits that hold our communities up,” Wondolowski said. “Let’s work together to protect the vision of a just, sustainable, and resilient future for our region.”
To learn more about the Match My DAF campaign — including how to pledge, contribute to the matching pool, or nominate a DAF grant for a potential match — visit resilientvalleyma.org.
