FAQs for Donors

Why donate here?

Benefits to Donors:
– 100% of funds donated go to donors’ selected programs
– Convenience of giving to one or multiple programs on a common platform
– Real-time email receipts for your donation
– 501(c)(3) nonprofit status for tax reporting purposes

Are donations on this site tax-deductible?

Yes, donations on this site are tax-deductible as we are a qualifying nonprofit organization (always confirm tax advice with your accountant).

How long does it take for my donation get to the school or team?

Generally, we send donations to sports teams that are ‘in-season’ each week. For other programs and sports teams that are ‘off-season’, we generally send donations at the end of each month or quarter. If a different schedule is needed, contact us and we are happy to accommodate your needs.

For programs that arranged for a customized donation page, program administrators also receive real-time email donation notifications and summary reports.

With 100% of my donation going to my program, who pays for running this site?

Support Newport Mesa is operated by an all-volunteer team with no paid staff. All costs for providing this donation service, including bank fees, website hosting, management and administration are paid for by optional add-on donations and our local business community through their Shop Newport Mesa loyalty program membership dues.

As long-time Newport Mesa residents, this site is one of the ways we give back to the community where we live, work, play and raise our families.

Can I donate by check instead of credit card?

Yes, donations by checks are welcome.
Reminders:
– Make check payable to: Support Newport Mesa
– Be sure to clearly print the name of the team or program on the face of the check
– Mail to:

Support Newport Mesa
901 Dover Dr. Ste #101
Newport Beach, CA 92660


FAQs for Programs Advocates 

What is a program advocate?

A program advocate is an individual, group or committee that leads fundraising activities for a school, team, club or other youth development program. A program advocate may be a coach, parent volunteer, team parent, fundraising board/committee or others that take an active fundraising role.

Programs that have arranged for a dedicated/custom donation portal are indicated with a red asterisk (*) on the list of programs page.

Why should our program use this site?

Benefits to Program Advocates:
– 100% of funds donated go to donors’ selected programs
– Provide the convenience of using this site as a primary or an alternative donation platform
– Dedicated/custom donation page (see example)
– Real-time donor donation receipts
– Real-time donor donation notifications
– Real-time program donation reports (see example)
– Visibility to a community-wide audience
– 501(c)(3) nonprofit status for tax reporting purposes

We already have established sponsorships, program ads, banner sales and more – why use Support Newport Mesa?

Some programs operate well-established fundraising campaigns while others may struggle to match volunteers with the needed skills/time. Regardless, Support Newport Mesa can help any program as a primary or secondary donation process.

Support Newport Mesa is designed to complement other fundraising efforts by providing an easy to use donation portal and a consistent donor experience for donating to multiple Newport Mesa area schools, teams and programs. If you have specific fundraising needs (program ads, banners, t-shirts, suggested donation contribution amounts, event ticket sales, etc), please contact us as we may be able to help your efforts by providing a customized donation page exclusively for your program.

Programs that have arranged for a dedicated/custom donation portal are indicated with a red asterisk (*) on the list of programs page.

Do you accept grant requests for specific needs?

As a general matter, no. Instead, we prefer to focus donations to those closest to the program as we believe they know what is best for the school, team, foundation, club, PTA or other youth programs

With 100% of my donation going to my program, who pays for running this site?

Support Newport Mesa is operated by an all-volunteer team with no paid staff. All costs for providing this donation service, including bank fees, website hosting, management and administration are paid for by optional add-on donations and our local business community through their Shop Newport Mesa loyalty program membership dues.

As long-time Newport Mesa residents, this site is one of the ways we give back to the community where we live, work, play and raise our families.

What is a School Connected Organization (SCO) and why is it important for everyone to know?

The Newport-Mesa Unified School District recognizes the important and vital roles that school-connected organizations (SCO) play in our school system. SCOs are groups of volunteer parents/guardians and community members and depending on the school site that support the district’s co-curricular programs. Accordingly, the district wishes to encourage strong relationships and partnerships with these organizations to help enhance the academic and co-curricular programs of our students.

The intent of the SCO is to promote, provide support to, and encourage our students during their participation in their respective co-curricular activity be it athletic or non-athletic. The intent is to further promote the program and provide organizational and financial support, enrich communication between school personnel and the community, and foster a collaborative relationship between parents, students, and the school. The SCO should be committed to providing a quality program that encompasses the total development of our students.

Read more in the NMUSD School Connected Organization (SCO) Handbook


FAQs More about Support Newport Mesa 

With 100% of my donation going to my program, who pays for running this site?

Support Newport Mesa is operated by an all-volunteer team with no paid staff. All costs for providing this donation service, including bank fees, website hosting, management and administration are paid for by optional add-on donations and our local business community through their Shop Newport Mesa loyalty program membership dues.

As long-time Newport Mesa residents, this site is one of the ways we give back to the community where we live, work, play and raise our families.

Why another non-profit – aren’t there enough already?

Some programs operate well-established fundraising campaigns while others may struggle matching volunteers with their needed skills. Regardless, Support Newport Mesa can help as a primary or secondary donation process. When Support Newport Mesa is used as a primary donation portal, even if just temporarily to help with an event, look for the red asterisk (*) highlighting those programs.

The Newport Mesa area is very generous in support of many nonprofit causes. According to GuideStar.org, there are over 6,000 registered nonprofit organizations in our two cities. However, as our kids participated in and we volunteered with school, team, academic, art and other programs, we experienced a ‘weak-link’ with many fundraising efforts was getting donations from those with means to those with needs.

For perspective, the Newport Mesa Unified School District has four high schools and 22 elementary schools and over 140 causes – teams, clubs and other programs – each seeking to raise funds from the community to enrich their respective programs. Many parents volunteer, but typically move on after a year or two in sync with their children’s progression through school. The turnover of volunteers is challenging for everyone – the volunteers, coaches, teams and both individual and business donors. The Support Newport Mesa platform helps make donating consistent across causes and programs and sustainable year after year.

What is meant by ‘Donor Fatigue’ and ‘Fundraising Fatigue’

‘Donor fatigue’ and ‘fundraising fatigue’ are when volunteers and/or donors become overwhelmed by fundraising activities.

Fundraising is necessary to support our local youth activities. Some people love it. Some people hate it. Fatigue can set in when the need for help outstrips the time and/or money from volunteers to the extent that helping becomes a burden in spite of what may have initially been with the best of intentions. Selling popcorn, candy, car washes, [fill-in-the-blank]-a-thons, bake sales, talent shows, home tours, drawing/raffle tickets, restaurant/store special sales sharing days and parent gala events can all be fantastic and this donation portal is meant to complement those efforts.

The Newport Mesa Unified School District has four high schools, 22 elementary schools and well over 100 teams, clubs and groups each seeking to raise additional funds from the community to enrich their respective programs. Volunteer parents typically move on after a year or two in sync with their children’s progression through school. The turnover of volunteers is challenging for everyone – the new/returning volunteers, coaches, teams and donors, both individuals and businesses alike.

The Support Newport Mesa platform seeks to make donating simple and year-over-year consistent across local schools, teams and other youth programs to help reduce fatigue and burnout.

How does Shop Newport Mesa giveback to Support Newport Mesa?

Shop Newport Mesa giveback to the community by donating a portion of membership dues to the nonprofit Support Newport Mesa to aid our area schools, arts, academics, athletics and other youth-related activities. Shop Newport Mesa also provides management and administration services to ensure Support Newport Mesa can continue to be operated by an all-volunteer team with no paid staff.

Does Support Newport Mesa donate to political campaigns or causes?

No. Donations to political campaigns are not consistent with our mission and would also violate our nonprofit 501(c)(3) status with the IRS and the State of California.

Why focus on youth programs not other social, environment or health issues?

We focus Support Newport Mesa toward youth development-related programs because we believe the scope and scale of our efforts can make a difference and ‘move the needle’ toward improvement and demonstrable impact on the immediate, short-term and long-term future for the causes we support. We’ve experienced firsthand both challenges and successes of raising funds in the Newport Mesa area and believe we can make a positive difference with youth programs.

We agree with many of the findings by The National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) and its member state associations: Youth participation in extracurricular activities helps develop life skills, form better citizens and improves the overall quality of life in local communities.

Please read our summary post on The Case for High School Athletics and other co-curricular or education-based activities and the embedded link to the full text.

Support for environmental, social and health issues.  As individuals and in our ‘day-jobs’, we support many such both
financially and as volunteers including fighting cancer (i.e. Susan G. Koman Foundation®), eliminating food shortages (i.e. Second Harvest Food Bank, Solutions for Urban Agriculture), and ensuring a healthy, sustainable environment (Surfrider Foundation) to name just a few. The reach of these causes are local, regional, national and global. We support these worthy causes and more while they are outside the charter for Support Newport Mesa.