Hometown History NJ celebrates #GivingTuesday
Plus, a special announcement about Season 2
December 3, 2024 might be just the Tuesday after Thanksgiving on your calendar, but in the nonprofit world, its known as #GivingTuesday. If you’re a fan of Black Friday and Cyber Monday (and who isn’t?) then Giving Tuesday is the right time to shift your focus to supporting the charities and local nonprofit organizations you care about the most.
A little history lesson (because we’re good at those)
GivingTuesday was created in 2012 as a simple idea: a day that encourages people to do good. It was born and incubated at the 92nd Street Y and its Belfer Center for Innovation & Social Impact in New York City and is now a global movement that inspires hundreds of millions of people to give, collaborate, and celebrate generosity.
This summer, we made Hometown History NJ a 501c3 nonprofit. That allows us to keep making Hometown History NJ podcasts without putting them behind a paywall. All our podcasts will be free to subscribe and free to listen to in perpetuity. But it also means that we require support from you - dedicated history buffs, New Jersey lovers and podcast aficionados - to keep our mission going.
As we approach Giving Tuesday, we at Hometown History NJ are going to be sending you reminders to donate and why it’s important to give. Here’s a sneak peek:
Your support helps us:
Preserve Local History: Document and share the often-overlooked stories of small towns.
Engage Communities: Unite residents through pride in their shared history.
Promote Education: Provide accessible, engaging content that deepens understanding of New Jersey’s heritage.
We’ve even made it easy for you to see how much your donation impacts our work.
$100 Pays for 1 hour of production work
$50 Covers one month of access to audio tools
$25 Supports our in-depth research
$10 Helps keep Hometown History NJ free for all
But you don’t have to wait until GivingTuesday to support the local history podcast you love. Our campaign to raise $5,000 this Giving Tuesday starts today.
Season 2 Is Coming
If we’ve been a little quieter this fall, that’s because we’ve been hard at work on more local history podcasts for you.
We’re happy to announce that next spring, Hometown History NJ is returning for Season 2, featuring Clinton, N.J.
You may know Clinton for its iconic Red Mill Museum, which sits magestically along a branch of the Raritan River in Hunterdon County, but this small town in western New Jersey has a ton of history worth exploring. We’ve already drummed up some exciting stories, including:
A 19th century rivalry between the Clinton National Bank and the First National Bank of Clinton (scandalous!)
The life of George “Peg Leg” Van Camp, a grave digger famous for his efficient digging services (despite having a wooden leg)
How a local Clinton tavern aided George Washington and his troops in crossing the Delaware River (and we can prove it, too)
We’re beyond thrilled to bring you these and other stories (8 episodes in total - two more than Season 1!) but we can only do it with your continued support. Consider helping us reach our $5,000 Giving Tuesday goal by donating today. And stay tuned for more stories and giving inspiration coming from us all week.
