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Thank you to the Village Thrift Shop for making this new website possible!

Giving Guest

tourism + businesses + philanthropy

Estes Valley receives 4.5 million visitors every year. Let’s turn those seasonal visits into year-round impact.

The Giving Guest program invites tourists to round up at the register of participating local businesses (or to purchase donation-dedicated products), who then donate the proceeds to a local nonprofit of their choice.

It’s a win-win-win:

  • Tourists are able to give back in a meaningful way to the vacation spot they love.
  • Local businesses strengthen the community they call home (while building brand philanthropy).
  • Local nonprofits receive much-needed funding to support their critical work.

Tourists, business owners, nonprofits, and the Network — together we’re turningpocket change” into real change.

Trendz at the Park Giving Guest image

Click any link below to jump down the page and learn how to get involved:

Since we created the Giving Guest program in 2022, a total of $32k in donations has been dispersed so far.

Tourists:
Support the place you love to stay and play

First, welcome to the Estes Valley! We’re thrilled to have you and even more excited that you’d like to give back while you’re here.

It’s easy to do: Visit any of our participating businesses and say, “Yes!” when they ask if you’d like to round up. Or look for donation-dedicated products with the Giving Guest logo.

This simple act of saying “yes” (repeated by thousands and thousands of visitors since 2022!) has helped us raised over $32,000 dollars — money that goes directly to 40+ nonprofits within our local community and supports the thriving vacation spot you know and love.

Don’t see the Giving Guest logo at your favorite spot in town? Ask them to join!

Here’s another way to make change: donate directly to the Network! Our educational programs offer a 12x return — meaning that every dollar yields $12 in hands-on support for local nonprofits.
Giving Guest smaller

FAQs for tourists

Which businesses participate?

Currently, seven businesses participate in Giving Guest. 2025 Business Partners include:

  • Trendz on the Park
  • Glen Haven General Store
  • Bear & Bee Inspired
  • The Mad Moose
  • Backbone Adventures
  • Kind Coffee
  • Mountain Shop

Where does my donation go?

Each business can choose who receives their donations. Businesses can choose a single nonprofit sector or spread their donations across all sectors.

​Sectors operating in the Estes Valley include:

  • Environment & Recreation
  • Arts & Culture
  • Community & Education
  • Emergency & Human Services
  • Youth & Families
  • Healthcare & Wellness

How can I help more?

Thank you for asking! Please consider asking every local business you visit to sign up for Giving Guest if they are not already a partner. And encourage your friends and family members to visit the local businesses that do participate. Every cent counts.

2025 Giving Guest Business Partners

Businesses: Strengthen our community by supporting local nonprofits

Estes business owners, we know that you’re heavily invested in the success of our community. You recognize how important a strong, thriving, well-connected community is — so won’t you help us build it?

As a Giving Guest Business Partner, you’ll be empowering tourists to make a lasting impact on the Estes Valley and strengthening the local nonprofits that protect our land, support our families, respond in times of crisis, and more.

Giving Guest benefits your business, too — building goodwill with local and out-of-town customers, forging a stronger connection to the community, and giving patrons a meaningful reason to give you their business.

Amplify brand philanthropy by joining us.

Giving Guest Toolkit for Businesses

Review the Toolkit

Get an overview of the Giving Guest program by downloading our Giving Guest Toolkit.

Download the Giving Guest logo

Please feel free to use the Giving Guest logo to get the word out!

Put it on participating products, in your storefront window display, and at the register.

Choose where donations go

You choose which nonprofit sector your patrons’ donations will go toward. (Or you can choose to spread them evenly across all sectors.)

​Sectors operating in the Estes Valley include:

  • Conservation, Environment, Recreation
  • Arts and Culture
  • Community and Education
  • Emergency and Human Services
  • Youth and Families
  • Healthcare and Wellness

Explain the program to guests

Many visitors of Estes have deep, invested roots in their vacations here. Some visit summer after summer through multiple generations.

Any way you look at it, guests are proud to visit Estes Park — and many would love an opportunity to give back.

The Giving Guest program makes it easy. All you have to do is explain how it works:

  1. Businesses sign up for Giving Guest with the Estes Nonprofit Network.
  2. Guests choose to round up at the register or purchase donation-dedicated products.
  3. Twice a year, the Network collects donations and distributes them to local nonprofits.

Feel free to direct visitors to this page to learn more, too!

Share WHY you participate

When asking visitors to round up, consider having a few different “elevator pitches” ready to share. The more you can explain your why, the more likely visitors will see the impact and want to join in.

For example, you might:

Explain the connection to your brand

  • Our business chooses to support the X nonprofit sector in Estes Park. The work of these nonprofits impact our community in ways that are especially meaningful to our staff and customers. Please join us.
  • Our business chooses to support nonprofits in our community. It allows our customers to join us in making an impactful connection to local services we all use.

Share a tagline

  • Join us in supporting local nonprofits.
  • Support the place you love to stay and play.
  • Connect with Estes Park by donating to local nonprofits at the register.

Nonprofits: Get more donations (without dedicating more resources!)

Free passive fundraising…

Need we say more?

OK, maybe just a little more! Since its beginning in 2022, the Giving Guest program has raised more than $32,000 for 40+ local nonprofits. This program is free to 501(c)(3) nonprofits serving the Estes Valley and requires registration in December of each year.

As a participating nonprofit, you’ll receive equal distributions from any donations dedicated to your sector. Then you’re free to use the donation wherever it serves your mission best.

That’s it!

FAQs for nonprofits

When are donations paid out?

Money will be paid out to participating nonprofits in December.

How do I sign up?

Send us an email to info@epnonprofit.org and we’ll get you signed up!

How can I support this program?

Thanks for asking! This program is completely free to nonprofits and requires no big investment of time of resources.

The best thing you can do to support Giving Guest is to get the word out! Share it with fellow nonprofiteers as well as family, friends, and visitors. The more awareness we can raise, the more funds will result.

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If you have any questions about the Giving Guest program or would like more information as a tourist, business, or nonprofit, please reach out! Send us an email at info@epnonprofit.org.