Glennon Doyle might be a familiar name for a number of reasons.
Perhaps you’ve come across her best-selling book “Untamed,” you’ve listened to her podcast, “We Can Do Hard Things,” or you know her as the impassioned partner of U.S. Women’s National Team soccer player Abby Wambach.
While Doyle’s words of wisdom (and darling Instagram posts) have been shared widely, her fundraising work does not always get the same spotlight.
Doyle is the creator of the nonprofit Together Rising, an all-women-led nonprofit organization that utilizes grassroots philanthropy to “transform collective heartbreak into effective action.”
Since its inception, the nonprofit has raised over $45 million for women, families, and children in crisis. It works in partnership with a number of trusted aid groups and community organizations, especially supporting family reunification, immigrants and refugees, and areas impacted by natural disasters.
That said, the organization works in many different areas, showing up when help is needed in a crisis.
Most recently, the Together Rising community has raised a total of $566,149.04 to provide aid to Palestinian families in occupied Gaza.
“There are hurting hungry people in Gaza we cannot feed right now. And there are hurting hungry people in Gaza we can feed,” Doyle wrote in an Instagram post on March 5. “We will not let what we cannot do keep us from doing what we can.”
The organization began collecting donations in February, responding to a bombardment in Rafah on February 11, where over 1 million Palestinian refugees have been forcibly relocated.
In 48 hours, grassroots donors raised over $296,000, which was added to a pledged $100,000 from Together Rising.
Since mid-February, the organization has raised an additional $64,866 from over 7,000 individual donors, bringing the total to over a half a million dollars.
“Our dollars are getting to the people in Gaza who need it most through our boots-on-the-ground partners American Near East Refugee Aid (ANERA) and Middle East Children’s Alliance (MECA),” Doyle shared. “They are each receiving a total of $283,074.52.”
Doyle also shared that Together Rising has been providing support to Gaza since 2021, donating $558,207 prior to the most recent fundraiser. These funds invested in life-saving supplies, medical intervention, clean water, food packets, hygiene kits, and psychological support.
With the recent influx of donations, Together Rising has raised a total of $1,124,356.35 for its partners in Gaza.
Although the generosity of donors is clear, many are still concerned about how effective their donations can be when aid groups still struggle to reach Palestinians.
“Many of you have asked earnestly exactly how supplies are getting into Gaza,” Doyle wrote.
According to her post, ANERA has had staff in the region since 1968, working with protective measures and existing structures to support people in need. The funds raised by the Together Rising community will go toward ANERA’s community kitchens as they feed displaced Palestinians.
“In one day alone they served 106,800 hot meals,” Doyle said.
She also explained that MECA’s team buys fresh produce parcels from farmers in the area and that their trucks containing dry food packages are entering the area through Cairo.
“In one week, MECA distributed food parcels to 12,000 families.”
Human Rights Watch has noted that Israel’s “forced starvation” methods as a method of warfare against Palestinians is considered a war crime, and the UN Security Council said that a famine was “almost inevitable” in late February.
This makes the work of groups like ANERA and MECA vital, alongside other continued efforts from groups like World Central Kitchen, which has served over 22 million meals in Gaza since October of this year.
Together Rising’s fundraising community — aptly called “Team Love,” is just one avenue many have used to contribute to humanitarian aid for Palestnians. And Doyle is grateful.
She closed out her Instagram post with a heartfelt thank you, a call for a permanent ceasefire, and “love, solidarity, and relentless hope.”
“Together, we are harnessing our heartbreak into hope and into relief from hunger for many families and communities in Gaza,” Doyle said. “We are immensely grateful for you showing up and declaring that there is no such thing as other people’s children.”
Header images courtesy of Alex Hedison Studio and Together Rising