Give Miami Day Sets New Record On 10-Year Anniversary

MIAMI (CBSMiami) - This year's Give Miami Day may be a record-setter for years to come.

"When I woke up this morning and I looked at the total in the morning of Give Miami Day and this is the most we've ever raised in a day," said Miami Foundation CEO Rebecca Fishman Lipsey.

The foundation puts on the event each year, helping over 900 nonprofits.

"Living through the greatest social economic and health crisis of our lifetime and across the neighborhood in Miami there are organizations that are stepping up," she said.

This year's goal was $20 million, but that was surpassed by midday but the need may be greater than ever.

"Although they do provide for us to live and other things, there are a lot of renovations that need to be done," Doris Puentes said.

Puentes is one of the people nonprofit Casa Valentina is helping.

"Pretty much they they kind of saved me from homelessness," Puentes said.

The program focuses on at-risk youth.

"Helping us with life skills that we might have learned from parents because most of us didn't really have that or were or going around from place to place."

Donations to Casa Valentina give people like Puentes a safe place to live and help to navigate education. She's now studying to be a graphic designer, currently on her first internship, and looking for a related job.

"So many, so many and it is really hard because you're so young and you're forced to mature earlier, to kind of try to think of a way to solve it but the truth is without people like the ones who founded Casa Valentina I don't know how or what I'd be doing right now," Puentes explained.

And she's just one of the faces in the community that Give Miami Day helps, but there are many more like her.

Click here to look at a list of nonprofits Give Miami Day helps.