The Equipment Leasing & Finance Foundation is designating June 8 a “Day of Giving” for everyone who has benefitted from the industry research, programs and resources the foundation provides. This is the fourth annual Day of Giving, which is intended to attract new donors and remind people of the lasting impact they and their companies make when they support the ELFF’s mission to propel the equipment finance industry forward. The ELFF hopes to surpass last year’s goals of attracting 50 new donors and raising $50,000 during its 24-hour marathon fundraiser. All giving levels are welcome.

As part of the Day of Giving campaign, the ELFF highlighted new resources it has released and programs it has conducted over the last year, which are made possible entirely through individual and corporate donations, including:

• The COVID-19 Impact and Recovery Survey, which is a quarterly survey of industry leaders designed to reflect longer-term effects of the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on equipment finance companies going forward.
• A podcast spotlighting ELFF resources and programs, as well as interviews with researchers, board of trustees members and more on topics such as returning to the office.
• Academic programs designed to attract new and diverse talent to support the future of the equipment finance industry. Among the programs is the Equipment Leasing & Finance Foundation Scholarship, which awards up to three scholarships of $5,000 each annually to students interested in pursuing a career in the equipment finance industry. The Virtual Guest Lecture Program is another such program. It provides an online opportunity for industry participants to share their stories and introduce students to the equipment finance industry.
• Topical and economic research studies, including the Vertical Market Series, which examines the conditions and outlook for road transportation, healthcare, construction, agriculture and logistics. All of these studies are available to download for free at the ELFF’s online research library.

“This Day of Giving is a reminder of the foundation’s contributions over the past year of the pandemic in providing resources that are unavailable anywhere else and are essential to the betterment of our businesses and our industry,” Mike Romanowski, president of CoBank Farm Credit Leasing and a trustee and the national development committee chair for the ELFF, said. “Making a donation today is an opportunity to give back and to make a lasting impact on the equipment finance industry from which we all benefit.”

To help meet its donation goals, the ELFF is asking people to post, share and retweet its Day of Giving messages on its social media channels (#ELFFGivingDay). In addition to sharing the ELFF’s social media messages, donors are encouraged to print or take a selfie with the “I Give Because” graphic available here and to and share their own reasons why they support the foundation.