A Victorious Day for Central Florida Nonprofits

NextStep Orlando at victory cup initiative

Thursday, February 2^nd marked Victory Cup Initiative’s second annual philanthropic competition held at Rollins College in the Harold and Ted Alfond Sports Center. Ten nonprofit finalists were hand-selected to undergo a storytelling workshop led by Rick Stone that helped them refine their unique stories and nonprofit branding strategy. Presenting to more than 400 Orlando influencers and leaders, the organizations competed for audience votes and the grand prizes of $20,000 for first place, $10,000 for second and $5,000 for third. But, the magic of Victory Cup Initiative is that all 10 nonprofits leave as winners because the remaining seven each receive a $1,000 participation award to bring back to their organization.

This year’s top three champions with phenomenal presentations were NextStep Orlando, Lighthouse Central Florida and Florida Abolitionist. The grand prize winner of $20,000 was NextStep Orlando, an organization that provides specialized exercise-based recovery programs for those living with spinal cord injuries, giving them the opportunity to achieve their greatest recovery potential.

Lighthouse Central Florida earned the second place title and $10,000 to fund its organization, which gives people with sight impairment the skills they need to live independently and increase their quality of life.

Florida Abolitionist received the third place $5,000 prize that will go toward its mission of ending modern-day slavery and human trafficking in Orlando by networking and facilitating preventative and restorative solutions.

The other 2017 nonprofit finalists that took home $1,000 included The Arbor School of Central Florida, Freedom Ride, Hope CommUnity Center, The Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra, Pet Alliance of Greater Orlando, The Jewish Pavilion and Page 15.

Although everyone leaves the Victory Cup Initiative a winner, these charitable organizations welcome support year-round. Audience members and supporters are encouraged to visit the landing page, victorycupinitiative.com/rise, made specially by Appleton’s web development team, for supporters to maintain involvement in the local causes and in Victory Cup Initiative itself.

As a returning title sponsor, Appleton was proud to offer full marketing support for this year’s Victory Cup Initiative. In addition to providing the nonprofit’s branding and marketing services over the past two years and holding positions on the marketing committee, Diana LaRue, Appleton CEO and creative director, is a founding and current board member for the organization. Since its inception, Appleton created and continues to maintain the Victory Cup brand, including the logo, website, videos, digital marketing and event collateral.

Victory Cup Initiative has provided over $80,000 to various charitable organizations throughout Central Florida with the help of its sponsors. The idea for this competition occurred when Ashley Vann, president of Vann Strategies, realized there was a real need to connect nonprofits with willing donors in the community. It’s the ultimate goodwill event that keeps giving, teaching and connecting each year.

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