Fundaxi, a New Mexico-based fundraising organization, is bringing new ways to support local organizations to Valencia County with the start of a new chapter.
“It started as just a dine-to-donate concept because Pizza 9 is one of our sister companies. Pizza 9 has always been heavily involved in the community and giving back,” said Rebecca Chavez, the Fundaxi HR and marketing director. “They wanted to create a platform where everybody can go and schedule their fundraisers with the specific Pizza 9 they wanted, and it would be housed in one place. So, they created Fundaxi and it worked.”
The organization began the dine-to-donate model with 12 restaurants, and now has more than 33 participating in seven different New Mexico counties — Bernalillo, Cibola, McKinley, Otero, Rio Arriba, Sandoval and Santa Fe. They have also started chapters across the globe.
“Those restaurants donate anywhere from a 5 percent give back to a 100 percent giveback,” Chavez said. “The reason being, they want to give back to their community. They are local businesses in New Mexico for a reason; this is their home, this is their place, where they want to grow, where they want their family to grow.”
Local organizations from youth sports teams to nonprofits can sign up to benefit from Fundaxi for free on their website. The group can schedule a dine-to-donate fundraiser with Fundaxi, providing a flier and other marketing materials, as well as tips on how to get the most from the fundraiser.
Chavez said in return, the restaurants get to reach out to a new set, or even a new generation of customers through their community service.
Submitted photo
The Hooligans, an Albuquerque youth baseball team, hosted a fund raiser at Fundaxi partner restaurant Pizza 9 and Revel Burger in Albuquerque earlier this year.
In addition to restaurants, Fundaxi is also expanding its business angel program, allowing other service-based businesses to give back to local organizations. Business angels will make a donation for customers wanting to participate in the program in the customer’s name. The customer will be able to choose which Fundaxi-registered organization the donation will go towards.
“The customer now feels better using these local businesses within Valencia County even though they have choices because as a business angel, if your customer sees your company is going to give a donation back to the community in their name, they are more likely to use you than the other electrician that is not on our business angel platform,” Chavez said.
Several Valencia County programs have already signed up to benefit from the fundraising, but currently there is only one business participating in the Fundaxi dine-to-donate program in the area — Pizza 9 in Los Lunas.
Meadow Lake local, Angela Mendoza, has hopes to expand the program, reaching out to more restaurants and potential business angels.
“It just recirculates (all the money) within our community, and we all help each other here,” Mendoza said. “It’s worked in Bernalillo County, and that’s why I’m starting a chapter here in Valencia County because it can work here, too.”
More information about Fundaxi, the dine-to-donate program, the business angel program and registration to be a benefiting local organization is on its website, fundaxi.com.
Makayla Grijalva was born and raised in Las Cruces. She is a 2020 graduate of The University of New Mexico, where she studied multimedia journalism, political science and history.
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April 18, 2024
