Austin Ventures, long known as THE venture capital firm in the Southwest, is becoming the Season of Caring firm for the second year in a row.  The firm is asking Central Texans to match the AV $50,000 challenge grant for Season for Caring, the Austin American-Statesman’s charitable campaign that raises money to help needy families and the nonprofit agencies that serve them.  In an interview with the Statesman, Kim Paschall, director of communications for AV says "The matching concept encourages giving and, just as importantly, participation amongst the entrepreneurial community.  Our past success with the matching challenge model has inspired us to collaborate with the Season for Caring campaign again this year." 

Last year, companies made significant donations to be matched by AV, including SailPoint Technologies Inc., Bazaarvoice Inc., CreditCards.com Inc. and Powered Inc.  Five companies also matched their employees’ contributions, which were then matched by Austin Ventures.  However, this year, AV has extended its matching program to all central Texan entrepreneurs, and is working with the Entrepreneurs Foundation of Central Texas, through its website, www.givetoaustin.org, which will collect the money raised to meet AV’s challenge. 
To contribute by check, send it to Austin Ventures Entrepreneur Holiday Matching Grant, c/o Entrepreneurs Foundation, P.O. Box 684826, Austin, Texas 78768.  In order to receive the match, monies must be contributed through this on-line site or through the Entrepreneurs
Foundation.  EF will not be imposing any fees or service charges, but is simply acting as the aggregator of contributions for the AV challenge.

For those of you that are unfamiliar with the Season for Caring, the program was started in 1999, when the American-Statesman began to partner with nonprofit agencies to raise money for needy families in Central Texas. The money, as well as goods and services donated to the campaign, helps meet the needs of 12 families that nonprofit agencies nominate. What’s left over is used by the agencies to help other families with similar needs.  Since Season for Caring began, readers of the American-Statesman have donated more than $2.8 million in cash and more than $1 million in goods and services ranging from carpentry and septic systems to dental care and legal assistance.

We at Austin Startup Blog are proud to belong to such a strong community of entrepreneurs that embraces the Season of Caring!