The Great Fish Community Challenge is a multi-week fundraising campaign that inspires community-wide giving and builds awareness about the critical work of Flathead Valley nonprofits. In 2024 the Great Fish Community Challenge raised $6.6 million for Flathead Valley nonprofit organizations. This included $5,4 million raised by 80 non-profits, over $100,000 in incentive grants and special awards, and $1.1 million raised by Whitefish Community Foundation for the Great Fish Match Fund. Whitefish Community Foundation organizes the Challenge free of charge and uses the Great Fish Match Fund to award a percentage match on the first $25,000 raised by each nonprofit, which this year worked out to $14,500.

FVSEF's fundraising goal for the Challenge in 2024 was $25,000 to ensure we were eligible for the full percentage match - and we surpassed that goal thanks to our generous donors. Funds raised during the Challenge go towards our program operations including coach wages and salaries, equipment purchases such as gates, drills, and video cameras, and capital improvements such as our project partnering with Whitefish Mountain Resort to improve the lighting on our training hill for after-school training!