For the past eight years, the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation and New Hampshire Public Radio (NHPR) have produced short radio spots demonstrating the positive impacts of local nonprofit organizations. The project has featured more than 170 nonprofits to date telling powerful stories of the work that charitable groups do to strengthen communities and enrich lives. This partnership has become Giving Matters, a weekly nonprofit series which airs on Saturday mornings at 8:35 a.m.

Giving Matters is now soliciting new nonprofit story ideas. Nonprofits wishing to be considered should submit a brief application form which asks for basic organization contact information and a brief summary of the suggested story.  Interested participants should submit their applications by the Thursday, July 1, 2010 deadline to givingmatters@nhcf.org. 

Please keep the following in mind before you submit your story for consideration:

We are interested in participant, donor, service recipient or constituent perspectives. Personal stories by people who can speak comfortably about their own first-hand experiences make the best spots. Listen to past Giving Matters stories at www.nhpr.org/givingmatters.

We are limiting applicants to those organizations that have not yet been featured in the new, longer Giving Matters format – that is, those nonprofits featured since fall 2007 are not eligible at this time in order to give other groups an opportunity to participate.

These radio spots are designed to create a positive face for the nonprofit sector as a whole, and to give people a reason to care about nonprofits and their work in New Hampshire. This series does not seek to raise money for specific groups, or to promote nonprofit events.

An advisory committee will select organizations whose proposed stories best convey the contributions and human face of the sector to listeners, while reflecting a range of subject matter, geography, voice and perspective. Organizations chosen to participate are pre-interviewed by writer Lois Shea, who spearheads production of the stories. Participating individuals will generally be expected to come to the NHPR studios in Concord to record their stories, though selected spots will be recorded on location.