Stefany Dolan, left, and Stacia Jones, who are sisters and grew up in Franklin, are owners of becauseOne, a platform that connects people who want to donate to local agencies with the specific needs nonprofits have in the community.
RYAN TRARES | DAILY JOURNAL
There had to be an easier way of connecting nonprofits with needs to people who could help.
Stefany Dolan and Stacia Jones saw the struggle that agencies throughout the area had getting the items and equipment required for their organizations to thrive. At the same time, people who wanted to help in different ways weren’t sure where to direct their generosity.
They asked themselves, what if they could link the two sides together?
“The nonprofits are the ones who do all the great things. They help the underserved and they know the needs,” Dolan said. “Traditionally, a nonprofit holds a gala, they ask for money, they do great things with it. This way, people can itemize and quantify the impact that they’re making.”
Then the two sisters acted. Dolan and Jones, sisters who grew up in Franklin, are owners of a new business, becauseOne. Their platform gives nonprofit organizations the ability to clearly communicate their needs on the becauseOne website. At the same time, supporters are directly connected to these needs based on their specific passions and interests.
The business has been in development for three years, before going live in October. Already, the nonprofits who have signed up, and the people who have contributed to those causes, are seeing results.
“With becauseOne we can highlight specific needs of the ministry whether it is our Christmas Giving program or regular weekly expenses,” said David Storvick, founder of 148 Ministries, which was one of the first nonprofits to sign up on becauseOne.
The idea that would grow into becauseOne was planted back when Dolan and Jones were children. They belonged to a church planning a construction project to build a new children’s and youth wing. The church created a capital campaign to raise money for the project, and it was successful in seeing through the construction of the physical building.
But there was not enough funding left over to furnish the space.
“We didn’t have funds for all of the stuff we needed to finish this,” said Jones, who lives in Whiteland. “So how were we going to go back to these people, who had been so generous and reinspire them to give? How were we going to clearly communicate what we needed, and put a plan in action that way.”
The Winteregg family helped create a solution. Jon Winteregg, Dolan’s and Jones’ father, put together a book listing all of the sundry items needed to finish the project, from tables and chairs to art supplies and fire extinguishers, all the way up to drinking fountains, playground equipment and trees. Prices ranged greatly, allowing people to pick the items they wanted to support that fit into their budget.
“There were $2 or $3 items, which were like arts and crafts stuff, all the way up to putting your name on the wing, and everything in between,” said Dolan, a Rush County resident.
The books were passed out, and then the Wintereggs waited. They weren’t sure how it would be received, but they didn’t have any better options.
Their hesitations were unfounded; the books proved to be a hit with the congregation.
“Everyone was so inspired and had so much fun flipping through the catalog, picking an item that they were connected with, and fulfilling that need,” Jones said. “It was amazing growing up seeing that church be so inspired, so invigorated, and come together for one purpose and one goal, and doing it in a way that had never really been done before.”
The experience led Dolan and Jones to think about how that approach could help others throughout the community while fostering a spirit of unity.
“We’ve been constantly pulled back to this idea. We wanted to create a place where people could go to follow nonprofit organizations, and also follow family and friends, to be able to focus on and be notified of the good things going on in the community,” Jones said. “If you can give, great. If you can’t, you can see the great things going on in the community.”
Dolan and Jones decided to call their project “becauseOne” in a nod to the idea that at their church, one person made a difference.
“We kept coming around to this idea that it only takes one,” Jones said. “Because one nonprofit opened a room, because one gifter supported that nonprofit by fulfilling a need, because one notification inspired someone else, our community and our world will be forever changed.”
Working for three years, becauseOne emerged as a gifting platform that serves both nonprofits and individuals, called “gifters.” Nonprofits who register receive a dedicated page to set up as their room, functioning as a storefront that allows the organizations to display items that they need.
Gifters can move among the different rooms, deciding the kind of impact they want to make. Their technology allows people to choose among 21 different areas they want to focus their help, such as animals, health and wellness, veterans and first responders, and community improvement.
“Once the gifter is set up, our technology automatically starts to align them with needs, or entire nonprofits based on that person’s passions and interests,” Jones said.
With the platform’s social media features, gifters can follow nonprofits, follow each other, and like the actions of other people. Nonprofits can then reach an entirely new base of support through those connections.
The technology is patent-pending, as this approach is a completely unique one, Jones said.
“We give you access to gifters who want to follow the good that’s being done in this community. We connect that nonprofit to someone they maybe has never had the opportunity to be connected with, because of that alignment technology,” she said.
148 Ministries became one of the first nonprofits to sign up for becauseOne in October. The Wintergreggs had known Storvick for a number of years, and were supporters of his organization, which brings together physical, behavioral and spiritual wellness in its approach to addiction, abuse and other mental health issues.
When he learned about the possibility that becauseOne offered, Storvick was excited to be part of it.
“It gives the donors a detailed view of the need requirements and allows them to choose which one they would like to support,” he said.
The first donation made on becauseOne came in from a supporter of 148 Ministries in Florida — someone who had never met Storvick or seen the work they do, but who liked what was displayed on becauseOne.
Currently, 148 Ministries are joined on the platform by organizations such as the Clark Pleasant Education Foundation, the Indiana Soccer Association and the Alaina Day Memorial Foundation. Dolan and Jones are hoping that as word spreads about their mission, more nonprofits and gifters get involved.
“It’s a way to breed exposure of the good being done in our community, and have that lightbulb go on in people’s minds — ‘Hey, they made a difference in our community, I wonder if I can make a difference?’” Dolan said.
AT A GLANCE
becauseOne
What: A gifting platform that serves both nonprofits and individuals. Nonprofits receive a dedicated page to set up as their room, which acts as a storefront, allowing the organization to display the items it needs to make a difference. Individuals, referred to as gifters, are then able to move from room to room, deciding the exact impact they want to make.
Who: Owned by sisters Stacia Jones and Stefany Dolan, both natives of Franklin; founded by their father, Jon Winteregg
How to get involved: Both nonprofits and individuals can register at becauseone.com
