What is Pick. Click. Give. Alaska?

By Jolene Nashlund

​Each year when filing for our Alaska Permanent Fund Dividend we have the opportunity to select a non-profit organization to contribute a portion of our PFD to. This funding option is called Pick. Click. Give. and is managed by The Alaska Community Foundation. Pick. Click. Give. also referred to as PCG, is an easy way to donate to your favorite Alaskan non-profit organization. Locally, WISE is one of the non-profit organizations that you can select to donate to.
PCG is a great way to donate because it’s simple, and quite honestly, for some of us, our annual PFD allows us a moment when we can be a little more generous with our funds than we are with our monthly paychecks. When I say it’s simple, it really is! When you file for your PFD online, towards the end of the application process, a Pick. Click. Give. option will be offered. If you select this option, you have the opportunity to peruse a vast number of non-profits right here in Alaska. Statewide, there are 163 participating non-profits to select from with four of them being right here in the Copper River Basin; Ahtna Intertribal Resources Commission, Copper River Hockey Club, Wrangell Mountains Center, and WISE.
Once you choose the organization, you can select your donation amount ranging from $25- to the entire amount of your dividend if you’re feeling super generous! None the less, every little bit helps these non-profits a whole lot! So please don’t get caught in the idea that $25 won’t make a difference, because it really does. If you find this hard to relate to, think back to when you were a teenager; I remember when I was 16, $25 was a pretty sweet amount! I’ll be honest, even now that I’m in my forties, and I find a $20 bill tucked in a jacket pocket I hadn’t worn in a while, I act like I won the lottery! Long story short, even a $25 donation can make a difference for non-profits and they are so thankful to receive them.
What is really convenient about this method of donating, is that it occurs out of sight and out of mind. It is automatically deducted from your PFD, so you don’t have to remember to write that contribution check yourself. You will receive a charitable organization receipt in the mail or through email so you can deduct it from your taxes the following year. Best of all, you have supported an organization that you believe in!
Do you want to learn more about WISE and how you can help? WISE has an interactive website that contains upcoming programs and activities, past Science Lecture recordings, and the WISEfriends Blog where you can access past articles dating back to 1998! Visit the site at www.wise-edu.org. If you would like to hear more about how PCG donations help WISE, please listen to the Pick.Click.Give. Podcast featuring WISE’s Executive Director, Robin Mayo. The Podcast can be found at https://www.pickclickgive.org/podcasts/ and on WISE’s Facebook page. Like and Follow our Facebook page to be apprised of upcoming WISE events and all the latest WISE news.
If you would like more information about Pick. Click. Give. please visit their website at www.pickclickgive.org.