P500

2025 Donors at 13/01/2025

Donations for the 2025 campaign are now open.

There is significant inequality across the Geelong region and many individuals and families are struggling.

Join P500 and help make a difference in your community.

What is P500

P500 (Philanthropy 500) is group of people who each give $500 that is pooled together to create a significant grant that helps alleviate need in the community.

How does it work

Each year we gather as many people as we can to donate $500 each to create a substantial pool of money.
This pool is then split into two, half of the money creates a grant and the other half is deposited into the Geelong Community Foundations P500 Sub Fund for investment.
4% of the Sub Fund is then used each year to top up the grant.

Once the grant amount is determined we invite local community organisations to submit a grant application. Applications are reviewed and three finalists are selected. More information about the grant application process is available on the P500 Grant page.

We then invite the finalists and P500 Donors (anyone who has donated $500) to our annual Pitch & Vote Night. At Pitch and Vote Night the finalists pitch to donors how they would use the grant and donors vote to decide who receives the grant. The organisation that receives the highest number of votes on the night is awarded the grant.

The runners up also receive a small contribution to operational expenses.

Who have we helped?

In recent years we have supported the following organisations who respond to critical need in the community:

2024- $80,000 to Farm My School- made possible by 278 donors
2023- $79,000 to Tiny Dots- made possible by 278 donors
2022- $75,000 to Wombats Wish- made possible by 261 donors
2021- $68,000 to Geelong Youth Engagement- made possible by 237 donors
2020- $46,500 to Feed Me Bellarine- made possible by 174 donors
2019- $52,500 to Sanctuary Counselling- made possible by 181 donors
2018- $40,000 to Good Cycles- made possible by 150 donors
2017- $22,500 to Gateways Support- made possible by 90 donors

For more information on our previous P500 grant recipients

Who can donate?

Anyone can be part of P500. Our donors are a diverse group of people who want to make a positive impact in our community. They come from across the region and represent a range of age groups, professions and backgrounds.

Since inception in 2017 P500 has continued to become a preferred option for people’s charitable donations.

Why donate to P500?

Your $500 donation has immediate and ongoing impact
Create a significant grant that help alleviate need in the community
Vote to decide who receives the grant
Learn about challenges in your community and the organisations that are making a difference
Connect with others

How can I donate?

There are two options:

$500 once-off
$42 monthly recurring

Donations can be made by Clicking here

If you wish to donate via EFT, please contact Administration by email

P500 Sub Fund

Every year half of every P500 donation goes into the P500 Sub Fund (managed by the Geelong Community Foundation). These funds are invested, growing the value of the fund over time. Each year 4% of the value of the sub fund is used to top up the P500 grant.

In this way P500 has both a immediate impact through the grant while also building a perpetual fund that will support the community into the future.

At June 30 2024 the value of the P500 sub fund was $471,700, and will contribute more than $18,000 to the 2025 P500 grant.

Contact Us

For further information about P500, please contact Foundation staff

Amy Waters, Chief Executive Officer
Tel: 03 5244 7827
Mobile: 0413 868 721
Email: amy@geelongfoundation.org

Tony McManus, Development Manager
Tel: 03 5244 7830
Mobile: 0417 334 434
Email: tony@geelongfoundation.org