Social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace make it easier than ever to share what you’re passionate about and expand your pool of supporters. And with PayPal, you can collect donations from your friends and family for the charities and causes you believe in.
Jump-start your grassroots campaign.
MySpace and Facebook badges let you raise money using your PayPal account. It’s easy to get started:
1. Choose your cause.
2. Copy or build the badge of your choice.
3. Send a broadcast message to your friends.
On MySpace, you can use the new PayPal fundraising badge to raise money right from your personal page. The site offers a selection of popular nonprofit groups as well as presidential candidates. Your friends can copy your MySpace badge to their websites and blogs, which gives your cause even more exposure.
Social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace make it easier than ever to share what you’re passionate about and expand your pool of supporters. And with PayPal, you can collect donations from your friends and family for the charities and causes you believe in.
On Facebook, PayPal offers a badge that you can personalize with your own colors and background. Put the badge on your profile page, and track its progress on the “giving tree” page. See which of your friends has copied the badge to their Facebook page – and who’s helped you raise the most money!
Use your social network to collect money for various causes:
* A nonprofit group dear to your heart
* A walk-a-thon raising money for cancer, Alzheimer’s or other causes
* New books for your local school, place of worship or community center
* Uniforms for your sports team
* Gifts for children who would otherwise go without
Make your fundraising more successful
Tell how the money will be used.
People feel more comfortable giving – and often give more – when they get details about the cause they’re supporting.
Spread the word about your effort by email, broadcast message and more.
Your MySpace and Facebook networks are a great place to start – encourage them to share your message with others.
Keep your MySpace/Facebook page updated.
Keep the momentum going by letting people know how much money you’ve raised so far.
Social networking makes giving more fun. Start your drive today. Learn more about raising money online using MySpace and Facebook.
Thursday, November 1, 2007
You can make a difference: Raise money for your favorite cause
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
MSF Warns More Food Will Not Save Malnourished Children
Group Calls for Increased and Expanded Use of New, Innovative Nutritional Products
New York, October 10, 2007 – The international medical humanitarian organization Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) today called for increased and expanded use of nutrient dense ready-to-use food (RUF) to reduce the five million annual deaths worldwide related to malnutrition in children under five years of age. Current food aid, which focuses on fighting hunger—not on treating malnutrition—is not doing enough to address the needs of young children most at risk, MSF warned.
"It's not only about how much food children get, it's what's in the food that counts," said Dr. Christophe Fournier, president of MSF's International Council. "Without the right amounts of vitamins and essential nutrients in their diet, young kids become vulnerable to disease that they would normally be able to fight off easily. Calls for increased food aid ignore the special needs of young children who are at the greatest risk of dying."
RUFs, which come in individually wrapped rations, contain all the necessary nutrients, vitamins, and minerals that a young child needs. This dense therapeutic food, which has milk powder, sugars, and vegetable fats, can be produced and stored locally and transported easily, and requires no refrigeration, making it ideal for use in hot climates. It allows a child to recover from being malnourished and catch up on lost growth. Being easy-to-use, mothers—not doctors and nurses—are the main caregivers, meaning far more children at risk can be reached.
"In Somalia we are giving acutely malnourished kids packets of ready-to-use food and we see them gain weight and begin thriving within a couple of weeks," said Dr Gustavo Fernandez, MSF head of mission in Somalia. "RUFs are practical to use in places like Somalia where security is very bad. General food distribution is also needed, but it is not going to be very effective to treat kids under three years old."
Severe acute malnutrition in early childhood is common in large areas of the Horn of Africa, the Sahel, and South Asia -- the world's "malnutrition hotspots." The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that there are 20 million young children suffering from severe acute malnutrition at any given moment and MSF estimates that only three percent of them will receive RUF in 2007.
Therapeutic RUF for only severely malnourished children, as current WHO, World Food Program, and UNICEF guidelines recommend, is too restrictive. Given its nutritional benefits, RUF has the potential to address malnutrition at earlier stages and is far more effective than fortified blended flour, which is normally distributed. MSF is piloting a program using a modified RUF as a supplement to prevent children from becoming acutely malnourished.
"Instead of waiting for kids to get gravely ill we decided to act earlier," said Dr. Susan Shepherd, MSF medical coordinator, Maradi, Niger. "We are piloting a program that gives RUF to all children under three in at-risk communities so that they get the nutrients that are missing in their normal diet."
Through this early treatment or prevention approach in Niger, MSF is providing mothers with small containers of RUF as a supplement to their normal diet. Early results from this ongoing project, which is reaching more than 62,000 children, indicate that RUF is significantly more effective than the traditional approach of supplying fortified flours and cooking oil to mothers of young children.
MSF is calling for donors and UN agencies to urgently speed up the introduction and expansion of RUF. This is going to take a new allocation of funds to cover the cost of €750 million (approximately $1.05 billion) to reach the most vulnerable. But it will also take a realigning of food aid strategies with existing and newly developed products that have the nutrition needed to cure malnourished children.
MSF has been treating malnutrition with therapeutic RUF since the first products became available in the late 1990s, and in 2006 treated more than 150,000 children with acute malnutrition in 22 countries.
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
Young People Making A Difference with the Do Something Good For You! Del Monte Grant
Do Something and Del Monte Foods are encouraging anyone under age 26 with an idea or program that promotes healthy living in their school or community to submit their projects for a chance to win the $2,500 Del Monte Do Something Good For You! Grant.
Do Something operates on six strategic principles:
All programs for people age 25 and under:
1. Led by young people. Adult participation is never required
2. Allow participants the freedom to choose their own course of action
3. Have Measurable impact
4. Are Free
5. Use innovative communications and technologies
6. Publicly celebrate high achievement
We want to get the word out about this great opportunity for young people to make a difference, and we thought So What Can I Do would be an ideal outlet. Applications are being accepted until November 9th!
Below is a link to the Do Something Good For You! PSA:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K8oBvNvg7Gc
Visit http://www.dosomething.org/node/36048 for more info on the grant.
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
Finalists Chosen for the $35,000 Drucker Award for Nonprofit Innovation
CLAREMONT, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Drucker Institute at Claremont Graduate University today announced 11 finalists for this year’s $35,000 Peter F. Drucker Award for Nonprofit Innovation.
The Institute, which works to advance the ideas and ideals of the late Peter F. Drucker, the father of modern management, will honor the winner and two runners-up on Nov. 19 in New York at a gala dinner co-hosted by the Leader to Leader Institute. More than 340 organizations applied for the award.
The dinner will be preceded by an all-day conference, “Creating the Future of Nonprofits: Opportunity and Innovation in the Social Sector.” (For more on the conference, including a list of speakers and a link to register for the event, please go to www.DRUCKERinstitute.com.)
The Drucker Award for Nonprofit Innovation has been given annually since 1991 to recognize existing programs that have made a real difference in the lives of the people they serve. Consideration is based on Drucker’s definition of innovation — change that creates a new dimension of performance. Cash prizes are designed to celebrate, inspire and further the work of innovative nonprofit organizations in the United States.
In addition to the $35,000 first prize, the second-place winner will receive $7,500 and the third-place winner will receive $5,000. (A list of previous winners is available at www.cgu.edu/pages/4126.asp.)
The judges for this year’s awards are: Ira A. Jackson, dean of the Peter F. Drucker and Masatoshi Ito Graduate School of Management; Geneva Johnson, secretary of the Leader to Leader Institute’s Board of Governors and former president and CEO of Family Service America; Jeffrey M. Johnson, Yucaipa Cos. executive, chairman of the board of the United Way of Greater Los Angeles and former publisher of the Los Angeles Times; Richard Polanco, chairman of the California Latino Caucus Institute and former California Senate Majority Leader; C. William Pollard, former chairman and CEO of ServiceMaster Co.; and Rick Wartzman, director of the Drucker Institute. The administrator of the award is Kerry Boyle, executive director of the Peter F. Drucker and Masatoshi Ito Graduate School of Management.
This year’s finalists are:
BerkShares, Great Barrington, MA. This is a local currency project of the E.F. Schumacher Society and the Southern Berkshire Chamber of Commerce. In circulation since 2006, BerkShares create consumer awareness, support local businesses and facilitate the development of new productive capabilities to fulfill the needs of the community.
Friendship Volunteer Center, Sarasota, FL. The Disaster Volunteer Initiative seeks to implement a countrywide coordinated response to disasters by establishing relationships and creating partnerships among non-traditional groups of volunteers from neighborhoods, civic organizations, faith-based groups, businesses and government agencies.
Elderly/Disabled Housing Program, St. Augustine, FL. This initiative offers homeowners living in dilapidated housing the opportunity to have their house demolished and a new home built on the same lot. Financial counseling through grant funding is offered, in addition to family support and advisement.
The “Made in NY” Production Assistant Training Program, Brooklyn, NY. This program enables unemployed or low-income New Yorkers to start careers in TV and film production through four weeks of free skills training followed by two years of job placement and career advancement services.
Wake Up and Walk Tour, Madeira Beach, FL. This effort involves an epic 10,000-plus mile walk of the United States’ perimeter by Executive Director Andrew Mandell, “Mr. Diabetes.” Mandell gets up close and personal with the public about diabetes to create awareness of the warning signs, risk factors, complications, preventability and financial costs.
DIGNITY Programs, Phoenix, AZ. This project was pioneered through Catholic Charities by a survivor of prostitution to help women safely and successfully break free from prostitution and rebuild their lives through community action, street outreach services, support/education groups and alternatives to incarceration.
ForSight Imaging, York, PA. This program serves people who are blind, providing them with a job and career path that seeks to broaden the range of industry positions available to them, from manufacturing to technology. It empowers blind employees to reach their full potential as knowledge workers instead of factory workers.
Disabled and Alone/Life Services for the Handicapped Inc., New York, NY. This program supports families concerned with the future needs of their disabled loved ones through membership in Life Services. Each member family is assigned a Personal Advocate who provides support during emergencies, offers guidance and advocacy, and develops a personal relationship with the family and disabled person.
Career Technology Program, Baltimore, MD. Focused on providing at-risk students at the Baltimore Talent Development High School with in-demand technology skills that lead to industry certification, the program utilizes a visual curriculum and offers the opportunity to take an adult certification course and receive college credit.
Rx Partnership, Richmond, VA. The partnership solicits free medication from pharmaceutical companies and arranges their distribution directly to affiliate free clinics and federally qualified health centers throughout Virginia.
Housing Foreclosure Prevention, Cleveland, OH. This consumer-action led agency provides foreclosure-prevention counseling, while effectively preventing and addressing predatory lending through public education, individual loan resolution assistance, grassroots enforcement of Credit Reporting Agency (CRA) responsibilities, negotiation of CRA agreements with banks, creation of quality loan products in low-income neighborhoods and advocacy for increased regulation of predatory lenders.
About the Drucker Institute
The Drucker Institute is a think tank and action tank whose purpose is to advance the ideas and ideals of Peter F. Drucker, the father of modern management. The Institute hosts conferences, undertakes research that builds on Drucker’s writings, produces material that applies Drucker’s work to current events, and offers a curriculum that distills Drucker’s decades of leading-edge thinking. The Institute also houses Drucker’s archives, which are in the process of being digitized for easy online access. The Drucker Institute is a campus-wide resource of Claremont Graduate University and is closely aligned with the Peter F. Drucker and Masatoshi Ito Graduate School of Management, where Peter Drucker taught for 35 years and which continues to produce effective managers and ethical leaders for business, government and civil society.
About the Leader to Leader Institute
The Leader to Leader Institute furthers its mission — to strengthen the leadership of the social sector — by providing social sector leaders with essential leadership wisdom, inspiration and resources to lead for innovation and to build vibrant social sector organizations. Specifically, Leader to Leader helps social sector organizations achieve excellence in performance and community building by providing guidance in managing for the mission; making innovation a part of all strategy; developing productive partnerships, collaborations and alliances; facilitating dispersed leadership; promoting and building richly diverse, inclusive organizations and communities; and using self-assessment resources for establishing mission, goals and objectives.
Contacts
The Drucker Institute
Rick Wartzman, Director, 909-607-9212
Marqui to Donate Subscription of Web Marketing Solution to Selected Nonprofit Organization
The Marqui solution helps non-profit organizations manage and increase the effectiveness of their online communications. Every year they host a lottery where one deserving nonprofit will receive Marqui's services free of cost.
Vancouver, Canada, October 12, 2007 --(PR.com)-- Marqui Inc., a leading provider of ondemand marketing automation and website content management software, announced today that they will be donating a subscription of their solution to a non-profit organization as part of their annual non-profit lottery. The award will enable the successful organization to make better use of their limited funds to build awareness and support for their causes without the burden and cost of managing their website or online communications.
“We are very pleased to be running this contest once again this year. We understand that many non-profit organizations have to rely on the generous donations of their supporters and operate with a limited staff and volunteers. The Marqui solution can help these organizations maximize the effectiveness of their online communications and website management,” said Rick Patri, Vice President, Client Solutions, Marqui. “The Web is such a pervasive medium, and Marqui provides non-profit organizations with easy-to-use tools to reach and build awareness with a worldwide audience.”
Non-profit clients such as the David Suzuki Foundation, the Canadian Liver Foundation, Coastal First Nations, and the Shriners of North America use the Marqui solution to:
• Control online brand and messaging
• Increase advocacy and outreach efforts
• Measure and optimize campaigns
To Apply
The award will be granted based on the organization's need and planned usage of Marqui’s ondemand software applications. All NPO/NGO's are invited to apply. Deadline for submission is November 30, 2007. Full award criteria and submission forms are available at www.marqui.com/donate
Marqui offers a comprehensive suite of on-demand software applications that automate and simplify a broad range of marketing activities; including web content management, email campaigns, search engine optimization (SEO), lead generation and CRM integration, analytics and program measurement. By combining all of these capabilities into one Web-based suite, Marqui enables customers to streamline marketing initiatives and improve program effectiveness without the issues or costs associated with installing multiple single-purpose products.
The Marqui suite of products – including Blog Management, Campaign and Email Management, Content Management, Marketing Analytics, and Approvals and Workflow – can be deployed incrementally or all at once based on business needs and objectives.
Further details on the Marqui marketing software suite can be found at:
http://www.marqui.com/solution/
About Marqui
Marqui enables customers to stand out from the crowd by providing innovative web marketing technology that helps align Sales and Marketing teams and execute closed-loop marketing activities. Marqui’s on-demand platform empowers customers to control their online brand and messaging, generate leads and revenue, and evaluate and optimize online campaigns. More than 250+ organizations have leveraged Marqui to successfully grow their brand and online campaigns through effective web content management, SEO, site search, CRM, and analytics.
Marqui's growing customer list includes: the Phoenix Suns, Ford Motor Company, Honda, Merck, Vancouver Whitecaps FC, Lakeland College, Roper Bioscience, CruiseWest, Grouse Mountain, BC Ferries, the David Suzuki Foundation, YMCA, and the United Way. Marqui is a Microsoft Certified Gold Partner. For more information please visit them at www.marqui.com .
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Contact Information
Marqui Inc
Angela St. Amour
604 630 1039
astamour@highroad.com
www.marqui.com
Saturday, October 13, 2007
Enable America Promotes Disability Mentoring Day 2007
Disability Mentoring Day offers an opportunity for people with disabilities to get hands-on, real-life employment exposure by bringing together job-seekers with businesses to open doors, provide mentorship and explore career opportunities. Enable America is proud to be a part of this annual event aimed at gaining awareness of the low employment rates among people with disabilites as well as help them make connections to securing a job.
Tampa, FL, October 13, 2007 --(PR.com)-- Enable America is proud to be a part of Disability Mentoring Day on October 17, 2007 nationwide.
Disability Mentoring Day offers an opportunity for people with disabilities to get hands-on, real-life employment exposure by bringing together job-seekers with businesses to open doors, provide mentorship and explore career opportunities.
Disability Mentoring Day started as National Disability Mentoring Day in 1999 in the White House, as a program to increase the profile of National Disability Employment Awareness Month, which is celebrated every October.
Enable America was founded in 2002 by attorney Richard Salem in Tampa as a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping people with disabilities find employment and live independently. It is the first organization dedicated solely to reducing unemployment among people with disabilities.
To better understand the issues facing the disability community, Representatives from Enable America traveled across the nation and conducted Town Hall Meetings in more than 20 cities in 17 states during a three year period. This listening tour gathered together members of the disability community, business people, educators, service providers, civic organizations and political leaders in cities such as New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Atlanta, Tampa, Chicago, San Diego and Los Angeles. Participants identified five key concerns among individuals with disabilities: employment, health care, affordable housing, transportation and benefits.
Enable America is committed to raising awareness of employment-related disability issues on a local and national level.
Good things happen when people have jobs. Visit www.enableamerica.org for more information.
###
Contact Information
Enable America
Dave Mikes
813-222-3227
dave.mikes@enableamerica.org
http://www.enableamerica.org
Friday, October 12, 2007
SO WHAT CAN I DO LAUNCHES NEWS AND PRESS CENTER
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 12, 2007
CONTACT: Karama C. Neal, editor
sowhatcanido@gmail.com
http://swcidnews.blogspot.com
http://sowhatcanido.blogspot.com
Celebrating its third year promoting ethics in action, So What Can I Do launches a new News and Press Center. This exciting new companion weblog offers So What Can I do readers even more opportunities to make a positive difference in the world.
So What Can I Do News and Press Center collects and shares press releases and news items from organizations around the globe promoting ethics in action. “We hope to provide an even greater variety of news and opportunities for our audience,” said Karama C. Neal, editor. “The News and Press Center is an exciting and meaningful way to celebrate our third anniversary.”
Press releases or news items describing opportunities to contribute to the improvement of our world should be sent to sowhatcanido@gmail.com in order to be featured at the So What Can I do News and Press Center
So What Can I Do, the public service weblog promoting ethics in action, lists hundreds of ways we all can make a positive difference in our world. The blog has been profiled in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Positive Thinking Magazine, DarynKagan.com, Our Day to End Poverty: 24 Ways You Can Make a Difference, as well as numerous other print and online publications.
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Tuesday, October 9, 2007
Guster Creates OURthreads Charity Closet to Benefit DramaticNeed.org
Members of First Fashion Marketplace Put Closet Items Up for Auction to Benefit Charities of their Choice
Bloomington, IN – October 9, 2007 – OURthreads, the first online style community where members can buy, sell or trade items from their customized virtual closets, has added Boston-based band Guster as its first charity closet. OURthreads members have the opportunity to bid on items in lead singer and guitarist Ryan Miller’s celebrity charity closet, the proceeds of which will go to the organization of his choice, Dramatic Need.
Dramatic Need (www.DramaticNeed.org) is a non-profit organization that was created to give musicians, actors, artists, and dancers the chance to make a difference to the lives of African children affected by poverty, illness and neglect.
Whether it’s an international charitable organization or a small local association, OURthreads encourages members to create their own charity closets to benefit the organizations that mean the most to them.
“Members of the OURthreads community can not only connect to others through similar fashion interests – they can also connect on a humanitarian level,” says Pete Yonkman, co-founder of OURthreads. “Members can support one another and the charities that mean the most to them by quickly and easily adding items into their virtual charity closets and putting them up for auction.”
Sunday, October 7, 2007
Green Clean Your Home, Office or School…All It Takes is 1 Small Step
Organization teaches social responsibility by donating portion of sales proceeds on behalf of its customers
Parsippany, NJ, October 05, 2007
1 Small Step (www.1smallstep.org) is an organization that provides “Green” approved cleaning products, and coordinates contributions on behalf of its clients to local charities.
The company uses a “Consumerism with a cause” model to implement their program by realizing that people who already use harmful, toxic chemicals to clean their facilities, would like to “go green” but do not know where to start. Because of this, the companies founders decided to make donating to charity on behalf of their customers, their main goal. “Everything we do is centered around a “think global, act local” way of thinking. We want to promote the use of Environmentally safe cleaning products, and teach a social responsibility to the users of our products by donating to charities that affect them close to home,” says Glenn C. Breslauer, Co-founder of 1 Small Step.
The company offers a wide variety of Green Seal Certified cleaning products for Day Care / Pre-Schools, Assisted living facilities, Physical fitness centers, Medical practices, Restaurants and private homes. They even offer a Gift Bucket of their most popular cleaning products, which makes an ideal house-warming gift or fundraiser item for the person who would like to offer the gift of green.
About 1 Small Step
1 Small Step is an organization whose main goal is to provide a solid foundation of environmental responsibility by utilizing a Green method of cleaning, and a social awareness program which is designed to give back to charitable organizations that affect our communities.
For more information, please contact 1 Small Step at 973.457.5824
or online at: http://www.1smallstep.org
###
Contact Information
1 Small Step.org
Glenn C. Breslauer
973-457-5824
glenn@1smallstep.org
www.1smallstep.org
Friday, October 5, 2007
Recognize an Extraordinary Farmer or Rancher With $10K Award
CONTACT:
Jennifer Morrill 202-378-1255 or jmorrill@farmland.org
Washington, D.C., September 27, 2007—Nominations are now being accepted for American Farmland Trust’s (AFT) 2008 Steward of the Land Award. The annual $10,000 prize honors farmers or ranchers who best exemplify AFT’s mission of halting the loss of productive farmland and promoting farming practices that sustain a healthy environment.
Nomination forms can be completed online at www.farmland.org/programs/award, or can be printed, completed and hand mailed to: American Farmland Trust, 1200 18th Street, NW, Suite 800, Washington, DC 20036. You may also call 202-378-1255 for an application or with questions. Nomination materials will be accepted until close of business day on Monday, December 3, 2007.
Sandy and Rossie Fisher, beef producers from Manakin-Sabot, Virginia, were recognized as the 2007 Stewards of the Land for their lifelong commitment to farmland protection and environmental stewardship. The Fishers operate Brookview Farm where they raise grass-fed beef and organic eggs that they sell at their on-farm store and to local chefs and grocers. Their farm’s composting operation turns municipal yard waste into compost for use on their farm and for other customers.
“Sandy and Rossie, like all of AFT’s Steward of the Land Award winners, have shown by example how successful you can be in agriculture and still be in harmony with the land. They have been instrumental in raising farmland protection issues in many community forums, and they have helped initiate local and state farmland protection efforts,” said Ralph Grossi, President of AFT.
“The Fishers are the first Steward of the Land Award winners from the state of Virginia, and their sustainable farming practices present a model for the federal 2007 Farm Bill currently being debated in Congress,” Grossi continued. “They also have the ability to look down the road, and they understand how serious the issue of farmland loss is to the future of agriculture.
The Fishers helped found the Goochland Land Alliance in 2002, which educates landowners about conservation easements, and they were the second farm in Goochland County to put all their owned acreage into a conservation easement held by the Virginia Outdoor Foundation and the Commonwealth of Virginia Department of Historic Resources. Part of their property borders the James River, which is leased to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers as part of a wetlands mitigation bank. The Fishers also participate in the Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP) that involves keeping all surface water fenced from cattle, establishing watering systems, rotational grazing and 23 acres of buffer strips.
The Fishers intend to put their $10,000 award toward conservation causes.
Established in 1997, AFT’s Steward of the Land Award recognizes an American farmer or farm family who best demonstrates leadership in protecting farmland and caring for the environment. The award honors the memory of Peggy McGrath Rockefeller, an avid farmer and conservationist who helped found AFT.
American Farmland Trust is a national nonprofit organization working with communities and individuals to protect the best land, plan for agriculture and keep the land healthy. As the leading advocate for farm and ranch land conservation, AFT has ensured that more than a million acres stays bountiful and productive. AFT’s national office is located in Washington, DC. The phone number is 202-331-7300.
Thursday, September 13, 2007
Give the Gift of Life During Sickle Cell Anemia Awareness Month
National Headquarters
2025 E Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20006
www.redcross.org
Contact: Lesly Simmons
Phone: (202) 303-4467
Cell: (301) 642-7365
SimmonsL@usa.redcross.org
WASHINGTON, Thursday, September 13, 2007 — Sickle Cell Anemia affects more than 70,000 people in the United States, and most of them are African-American. September is Sickle Cell Anemia Awareness Month, a perfect time to make an appointment to give blood in support of the thousands of people across the country suffering from this disease. One in every 12 African Americans carries the trait for sickle cell disease.
One of the most common treatments for Sickle Cell Anemia, which causes red blood cells to form an abnormal crescent shape, is regular blood transfusions to help reduce the risks of stroke, damage to major organs that can lead to severe infections, and other complications that can arise from the disease. Many patients need blood transfusions every few weeks to help keep the effects of the disease at bay, and transfusions from blood donors of the same ethnic background are even more beneficial because they have less chance of causing complications for the recipient.
“Giving blood is an easy way to help someone in need and feel good about doing it,” said Red Cross National Celebrity Cabinet Member Patti LaBelle. “With so many people in our community suffering from sickle cell anemia, it’s also the right thing to do to help our neighbors and friends in need.”
Additionally, African Americans are more likely to have blood type O and B than other populations. These types are particularly in need, so scheduling a donation can also help alleviate blood shortages around the country.
To schedule an appointment to donate blood, call 1-800-GIVE LIFE, or visit http://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gif.
The American Red Cross helps people prevent, prepare for and respond to emergencies. Last year, almost a million volunteers and 35,000 employees helped victims of almost 75,000 disasters; taught lifesaving skills to millions; and helped U.S. service members separated from their families stay connected. Almost 4 million people gave blood through the Red Cross, the largest supplier of blood and blood products in the United States. The American Red Cross is part of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. An average of 91 cents of every dollar the Red Cross spends is invested in humanitarian services and programs. The Red Cross is not a government agency; it relies on donations of time, money, and blood to do its work.
Friday, September 7, 2007
Innovative Fund Raising Website Clicks! for Cystic Fibrosis is Launched
Clicks! for the Cause, Inc. has officially announced the launch of their flagship venture, Clicks! for Cystic Fibrosis. The website, and associated tools, are now available to the Cystic Fibrosis community, friends, and family at http://www.clicksforcf.com
-- Innovating the way people give and support their favorite charity, Clicks! for Cystic Fibrosis has been made publicly available.
Clicks! for Cystic Fibrosis has created an easy way for individuals to ensure their favorite charity receives a portion of the profit from their online purchases. When an internet user wishes to make a purchase with any of over 400 leading online retailers (such as Barnes and Noble, WalMart, Dell, Linens N Things, Staples, and more), all they need to do is locate them within the Click! for Cystic Fibrosis retailer directory and use the link provided for that vendor.
"As someone involved in the technology industry, and the parent of a child with Cystic Fibrosis, I was looking for an innovative way to fundraise for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation," states Clicks for the Cause, Inc. Vice-President, James Stewart. "The goal was to give people an opportunity to shop online with their favorite online retailers, as they normally would, and support life-saving research at the same time."
Every retailer within the Clicks! for Cystic Fibrosis directory is listed with a percentage or dollar value clearly stated next to their name. This value represents the amount of their purchase that goes directly to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. By reviewing this information, shoppers can feel good in knowing the exact amount of their purchase that will go to life-extending Cystic Fibrosis research.
In addition to the Clicks! for Cystic Fibrosis website, several supporting tools have also been made publicly available. The Clicks! for Cystic Fibrosis toolbar integrates directly into Internet Explorer, saving users the time of having to access the website. Additionally, a custom Windows Vista Gadget and Firefox custom Search Engine have also been made available for use. "Our strategy is to make the Clicks! shopping experience as simple and effortless as possible," adds Mr. Stewart.
About Clicks! For Cystic Fibrosis
Established in 2007, Clicks! for Cystic Fibrosis, and parent company Clicks! for the Cause, Inc. were created with one goal in mind – to maximize donations for key charitable organizations and help save lives.
More information about Clicks! for Cystic Fibrosis can be found on the web at http://www.clicksforcf.com.
Contact Info:
James Stewart
Vice President
Clicks! For The Cause, Inc.
Phone: 877-925-4257
Email: jstewart@clicksforthecause.com
Web: www.clicksforthecause.com
Wednesday, August 15, 2007
BLOGGERS TO UNITE ON BLOG ACTION DAY
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 15, 2007
All Blogs Invited to Take Part in Joining Voices to Help Environment
An international initiative of bloggers known as "Blog Action Day" launched today, with the aim of uniting thousands of blogging voices, talking about one issue for one day. This year on Blog Action Day, which is slated for Oct. 15, 2007, bloggers will be discussing the environment.
Major blogs have signed up to participate, including Lifehacker, Dumb Little Man, Lifehack.org, Get Rich Slowly, Web Worker Daily, GigaOm, The Simple Dollar, Zen Habits, Freelance Switch, LifeClever, Unclutterer, Pronet Advertising, Wise Bread and many more.
"For just one day, we'd like to unite as many of the millions of bloggers around the world and speak about one issue - the environment," said Collis Ta'eed, an Australian blogger from FreelanceSwitch.com, and a cofounder of Blog Action Day. "We want to display the potential and the power of the blogging community, which is a disparate community but one with an amazing size, breadth and diversity. By bringing everyone together for one day, we can see just how much can be achieved, and how much we can be heard."
Blog Action Day is a non-profit initiative, and will be an annual event. As an alternative to blogging about the environment on Blog Action Day, bloggers can opt to participate by donating their blog's proceeds from Oct. 15 to one of several environmental organizations chosen for this purpose: Greenpeace International, The Nature Conservancy, the National Wildlife Federation (NWF), the Conservation Fund, and the Sierra Club.
Bloggers who would like to participate in Blog Action Day should visit BlogActionDay.org or email Collis Ta'eed at collis@eden.cc, so they can be listed on the Blog Action Day site. To participate, a blog just needs to write about the issue of the environment on Oct. 15, 2007, or donate its proceeds for the day to one of the chosen environmental organizations.
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Friday, July 27, 2007
Seeking Host Families for Youth For Understanding Exchange Students - Share Your Home, Change the World
Released on = July 27, 2007, 9:30 am
Press Release Author = Youth For Understanding USA
Industry = Non Profit
Press Release Summary = Youth For Understanding USA is seeking volunteer host
families around the country to host one of more than 2000 international teengers
arriving in August.
Press Release Body = What do teens like Luiza from Brazil, Hannes from Germany,
Manami from Japan, Wasim from Pakistan, and Andrea from Mexico have in common?
They are about to join a group of 2000 teens from more than 60 countries who are
coming to America in August as Youth For Understanding (YFU) high school exchange
students! Many of them are still waiting to learn what loving American host
families will select them to be their new exchange sons or daughters.
These teens are hoping for experiences like enjoying a real American barbecue,
attending a Halloween costume party and a high school football game, joining a
school sport or music group, and sharing in the fun and responsibilities as real
members of their American host families.
It takes many caring people to make an exchange student’s dreams come true: it is
the host families and the volunteers who make this adventure possible. They are
essential links in the chain of friendship that goes back 55 years through 225,000
YFU students who have exchanged world-wide with Youth For Understanding.
Today Youth For Understanding is seeking host families for many bright, hopeful
teens like these who will carry on that tradition and form lifelong connections with
their host families and communities. Host families provide a place to live and
three meals a day plus the encouragement, advice and love to help their new family
member through a year in a new home. The students bring their own spending money
and health insurance plus the willingness to be a good family member, following
family rules and helping out with family responsibilities. YFU provides local
representatives who mentor the students and families to make sure it’s a good
experience for all involved.
Host families offer a typical family living experience — not a tourist/travel
opportunity. They are caring people who offer a slice of real life in America.
Families come in all shapes and sizes, ethnicities and ages, with and without
children of all ages. They share an interest in teens and other cultures. Some
families agree to host a student for the academic year while others agree to be a
welcome family who will get the student off to a good start for up to 12 weeks.
Call the local YFU District Office at 1-866-493-8872 for more information to see if
hosting might be right for you and your family. You can request profiles of
students with interests similar to your own. More information is available on the
Youth For Understanding web-site at www.yfu-usa.org where families and volunteers
can fill out an on-line application.
Despite the differences people face around the world, kids are kids, and these YFU
kids are hoping for acceptance, caring, friendship, and opportunities. They are
also counting on wonderful people—like your family--who make those dreams come true.
Please consider helping a child begin their adventure of a lifetime with a positive
start! Sometimes the best “gifts” are the least expected ones. YFU is looking for
the right recipients for these gifts.
##
Web Site = http://www.yfu-usa.org
Contact Details = Youth For Understanding USA
6400 Goldsboro Road, Suite 100
Bethesda, MD 20817
Reid Rago - Media Relations
rago@yfu.org
800.424.3691 x 189
Sunday, March 25, 2007
You’re Invited to Visit Spring Lambing at Heifer Ranch
Who: Participants in Lambing Season programs at Heifer Ranch
What: Observe spring lambing and visit with participants
When: March 23, 2007, 6 a.m. to noon.
Where: Heifer Ranch, Perryville, Arkansas
During Heifer Ranch’s spring lambing season, women from all over the U.S. are introduced to Heifer’s mission to end hunger and poverty and care for the earth. Participants say they leave these events with a deeper understanding of the world, Heifer’s work and themselves.
One participant said that she had gained a new and better outlook on how a majority of the world lives, which is different from her own life experiences. “This trip allowed my mind to open up, expand and see the bigger picture which I sometimes forget.”
Since 1995, women have shared in the births of dozens of lambs each spring during the Women’s Lambing Season programs. This year the Ranch expects more than 70 participants and from 60 to 100 lambs.
The opportunity to watch the birth of lambs is a highlight of the program for many people. “Watching the little lambs come into this world, I was awestruck and my heart just melted. It was a very profound and moving experience,” said a woman who attended last year’s lambing.
Each of the Women’s Lambing Season programs includes a brief introduction to gestation, birth, and post-lambing care of ewes and lambs. Additionally, the women learn about gender equity, sustainable agriculture and Heifer’s livestock practices.
Registrants can also participate in classes on value-added products such as cheese-making and/or wool crafts and assist with Ranch garden and livestock chores.
Participants also enjoy working and learning from Ranch staff, “The humility and encouragement of all the facilitators for us to share and ask questions really struck me. It was one of the best forms of education that I’ve ever received.”
For more information on attending this Media Open Call, contact Beth Newman, Marketing and Public Relations Coordinator at Heifer Ranch, by calling 501-889-5124 or e-mailing beth.newman@heifer.org.
Heifer Ranch is one of Heifer’s three U.S. learning centers, focusing on world hunger solutions, organic gardening and sustainable agricultural practices. At Heifer Ranch, over 28,000 visitors a year become familiar with the root causes of poverty and hunger and Heifer’s work to help the poor achieve self-reliance. Since 1944, Heifer has helped more than 7 million families in more than 125 countries move toward greater self-reliance through the gift of livestock and training in environmentally sound agriculture. The impact of each initial gift is multiplied as recipients agree to “pass on the gift” by giving one or more of their animal’s offspring, or the equivalent, to another in need. For more information on Heifer’s work, visit the website at www.heifer.org, or call 1-800-696-1918 for a free catalog.
Media Contacts:
Beth Newman, Heifer Ranch
501-889-5124
Jennifer Pierce
Heifer International
501-907-2952
Christine Volkmer
Carpenters & Associates
214-520-3666
