LANCASTER, Pa. -- The Annual Extraordinary Give is like a holiday to people in Lancaster County.
Downtown Lancaster’s lit up, and people celebrate all day because for 24 hours, millions of dollars are raised for nonprofit organizations benefiting Lancaster County.
“It’s kind of an unprecedented day of giving in Lancaster County," said Aaron Spangler, Director of Communication with the Lancaster County Community Foundation.
It is the largest day of giving in Central Pennsylvania, according to officials, and each year it's been put on by the Lancaster Community Foundation, more money has been raised.
“It’s important to invest in the things you care about and to learn about other things, other people doing cool work in the county you might be interested in," added Spangler.
Organizations recruit donations however they can, from the Children’s Alliance dancing in the street to the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank dancing in vegetable costumes.
“With our purchasing power and partnerships one dollar donated is six meals for people in need, and that’s fantastic," said David Carl with the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank.
Many people here tell me they are so thankful to take part in giving back.
“It supports so many good things in our community, and I wanted to support all of that and bring my boys along too so they can see kind of what it means to be involved in a community event with a lot of other people," said Maria Dickson of Mount Joy.
Though each donation is important, the overall message is what officials hope sticks with people in Lancaster County.
“If somebody would rather give a million dollars the day after the extraordinary give, we love that. It doesn’t matter if it’s the extraordinary give - what matters is somebody wants to take the step and really get involved in the things they care about," said Spangler.