This Give to the Max Day, I plan to support food shelves and housing organizations. I also plan to give to the small theater company where my son had his acting debut. Together, they create the kind of community I want him to grow up in. Tens of thousands of Minnesotans like you and me make similar choices every November to support the causes that feed both our bodies and our souls.
My time in theater and the arts taught me we’re all connected. A good ensemble doesn’t succeed because some actors are more important than others, but because everyone plays their part. The same is true for our nonprofit ecosystem. Food shelves, housing organizations, arts venues and mental health services are all part of the same ensemble, working together to create safe, thriving communities.
Related: DOGE cuts trim funding for arts and humanities efforts in Minnesota
Minnesota’s arts and cultural organizations drew 17.7 million attendees in 2024 and contributed $13.8 billion to our economy, supporting 138,360 artists and creative workers. Their impact shows up in smaller moments, too. The parent watching their child imagine new possibilities during a community theater show. The neighbors connecting at a local gallery. The teenager seeing their identity reflected in a dance performance and feeling less alone.
Yet many arts and culture organizations are wondering if they’ll make it to the next season. This has been a particularly challenging year. The National Endowment for the Arts terminated more than $882,500 in grants to 35 Minnesota organizations, including funds that had already been approved. We’ve watched beloved institutions close their doors or go dark to regroup.
Research confirms what artists have always known. Participation in creative activities reduces loneliness and improves mental health. When people feel connected and joyful, they’re more likely to notice when their neighbors need help with food or housing. Joy and necessity are complementary.
Nonprofits of all missions are facing funding uncertainties. But Minnesotans have never treated giving as a zero-sum game. We don’t give less to food shelves so we can support theaters. We find ways to support both because we understand communities need the full ecosystem to thrive.
We often measure nonprofit impact in tangible ways. Meals served, people housed, students educated. These matter immensely, but nonprofits also create something harder to measure and just as essential. They provide belonging, connection and reasons to gather.
After a year of funding cuts and organizational closures, Minnesota’s arts community needs our individual donations. And we need music filling our streets. Because a community built only on meeting urgent needs, without spaces for joy and connection, isn’t as resilient as one where we invest in the full ecosystem.
Related: How the shutdown broke America’s food chain — and what happens next
I’m supporting food shelves because no one should go hungry. Housing organizations because everyone deserves stability and safety. And arts organizations because we all deserve beauty, connection and the chance to see ourselves reflected in our community’s creative life.
The incredible thing about Give to the Max Day is watching thousands of Minnesotans make similar choices to give diversely. Last year, donors gave more than $37 million to more than 6,500 organizations across every cause area and every corner of our state. People didn’t choose between feeding neighbors and supporting the arts. They chose all of it. They said, “Yes and.”
The communities we’re building deserve everything. Survival and flourishing, necessity and delight, urgent response and long-term investment. Our neighbors need dinner on the table and a place to gather. Children need full bellies and full imaginations. We all need safety and connection, stability and beauty.
And the best part is, we don’t have to choose. Minnesota’s generosity is big enough for all of it.
Jenna Ray is executive director and CEO of GiveMN and a St. Paul resident. She holds a bachelor’s degree in theater arts, English and multicultural studies from the University of Minnesota Morris.
The post This year, I’m giving to causes and organizations that meet needs, provide joy appeared first on MinnPost.
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