Old North Illuminated Joins Prestigious Bloomberg Philanthropies Digital Accelerator Program in Anticipation of 250th Anniversaries

By Jason Fishman, Communications Manager for Old North Illuminated

Old North Illuminated, the non-profit organization that stewards Old North Church & Historic Site, has been selected to join the Bloomberg Philanthropies Digital Accelerator Program! This initiative helps cultural organizations across the U.S. and U.K. strengthen technology and management practices to improve operations, drive revenue, increase fundraising, engage broader audiences, and deliver dynamic programming.  

“The Bloomberg Philanthropies Digital Accelerator Program comes at a pivotal time for Old North,” says Nikki Stewart, Executive Director of Old North Illuminated. “As we approach the 250th anniversary of Paul Revere’s lantern signal in 2025 and America’s 250th birthday in 2026, this critical support will help us redesign our website to better serve the hundreds of thousands of visitors expected in Boston. Our website also hosts free curricula, lesson plans, and educational videos used in classrooms nationwide. We’re grateful to Bloomberg Philanthropies for enhancing the digital experience for history students and global visitors.”

Over the past three years, the Digital Accelerator Program has been a catalyst for strengthening nearly 150 cultural organizations across the U.S. and U.K. To date, the 40 institutions that were part of the first cohort cumulatively grew an additional $20 million in new revenue including through fundraising, reached over 1 million new audience members, and engaged more than 4,000 new artists and partners. 

Old North Illuminated is one of 200 nonprofit cultural organizations accepted into Bloomberg Philanthropies’ new Digital Accelerator Program cohort, spanning artistic disciplines and organization size in 52 U.S. cities and 28 U.K. cities.