SANTA BARBARA, CA — Goodwill Industries International and Santa Barbara-based lifestyle apparel company Horny Toad have partnered to “Share the Warmth” this holiday season. From now through December 31, customers can donate their gently used clothes at Goodwill® locations across the country, go online to tell Horny Toad about the experience, and receive a 15-percent discount on new Horny Toad clothing.

Horny Toad recognizes that this holiday season it is more important than ever to think about others. The revenues from the sale of donations in Goodwill stores fund job training programs for people in the local communities. The donations also help recycle usable clothing in environmentally sound ways by keeping them out of landfills. Horny Toad has set a goal of 100,000 units donated by December 31. If the company meets this goal, Horny Toad will donate $10,000, or 10 cents for every donated item to Goodwill.

“Last year’s Share the Warmth donation drive was a success nationwide,” said Gordon Seabury, president and CEO of Horny Toad.  “This time around, we’re hoping our partnership with Goodwill will make an even bigger impact and we hope this promotion will inspire others to give back.”

Share the Warmth is an honor-based donation program — meaning that Horny Toad will trust that individuals have donated their gently used clothing. After giving to Goodwill, donors are asked to visit Horny Toad’s blog to share how many units they donated and how it made them feel to give back. In return, Horny Toad will extend a 15-percent discount at www.hornytoad.com and at participating dealers across the country.

“With Goodwill depending on its retail sales for more than half of its revenue, every piece of clothing donated will help us earn the funding we need to provide effective employment programs in local communities,” said Jim Gibbons, president and CEO of Goodwill Industries International. “These programs will help people with disabilities, those who lack education or job experience, and others facing employment challenges through employment training and other community-based services.”

For additional information on the Share the Warmth program or on Horny Toad’s other philanthropic campaigns, visit www.hornytoad.com. To find a Goodwill location, use the online locator at locator.goodwill.org or call (800) 664-6577.

ABOUT HORNY TOAD

Based in Santa Barbara, a few hundred yards from the beach, Horny Toad is a clothing company that takes fun seriously, celebrates the adventure in every day life (both outdoors and in) and always aims to do the right thing.  The Toad culture is oriented around community, sustainability, and looking for new ways to accomplish traditional business goals. To learn more visit www.hornytoad.com or call 800.865.TOAD.

During my recovery, I spent 21 days in a coma. Afterwards, I spent the next four years in a wheelchair, not knowing if I would ever walk again and suffering from severe memory problems as a result of my head injuries.

The accident gave me plenty of time to think about my future. With my injuries, I could no longer work as a roofer, and I had no other job skills or an education to fall back on.

Then I found out about Goodwill of Greater Washington and enrolled in its work adjustment training program, which helps people with disabilities get back into the workforce through on-the-job training.

Charlie Sheets shares his story at Goodwill's 2007 Advocacy Day.

After one week in the training course, I received my first paycheck in five years. I was so excited just to get training that when I got the paycheck, I was shocked. It put a big smile on my face.

But I didn’t stop there. In 2004, I graduated from a computer training course and am now employed as a full-time data entry associate with Goodwill of Greater Washington. I enjoy getting up and going to work everyday. Not many people can say that and mean it.



Listen to Charlie tell his story in this week’s My Story Podcast.

Take part in a series of online courses to learn how to create a safety health management system – the foundation of a workplace safety program. To participate, you must work for an organization with less than 750 employees and be covered under the OSHA Act.

Our trainings utilize Adobe Connect Pro, a web-based meeting tool, to introduce the core elements of a safety health management system. On the scheduled course days, most lessons will be taught at 10 a.m. EST and 2 p.m. EST.

Current/Upcoming Trainings

Multiple Sessions

• Module 1: Nov. 17, 2:00 p.m.
• Module 2: Nov. 19, 2:00 p.m.
• Module 3: Dec. 1, 2:00 p.m.
• Module 4: Dec. 3, 2:00 p.m.
• Module 5: Dec. 8, 2:00 p.m.

Single Day Sessions
There are no single session trainings available.

A year after the training, you will be surveyed on whether your organization has implemented a safety health management system.

If you are interested in having a trainer host a session for you, contact GII Human Resources Consultant Ann Seeney.

This Veterans Day and every day, Goodwill plays a vital role in helping veterans learn the skills they need to find meaningful employment and find the support they need to access healthcare, tax assistance, housing or housing referrals, and other rehabilitation services.

“For more than 100 years, Goodwill has been committed to providing services for veterans,” said Jim Gibbons, president and CEO of Goodwill Industries International. “The transition to civilian life can be difficult, and through Goodwill’s job training programs and partnerships with social service agencies, veterans groups and faith-based organizations, we help veterans put their lives back on track and re-enter the workforce.”

Goodwill is helping veterans like Harvey Brown, a Gulf War veteran who was awarded the National Defense Service Medal; Kuwait Liberation Medal; Southwest Asia Service Medal with two Bronze Stars; Navy Unit Commendation; Army Service Ribbon, and the Sea Service Deployment Ribbon. Upon returning home, however, Brown battled health issues, depression and substance abuse.

Through Goodwill’s “Operation Independence”, a program funded through the Department of Labor that provides job skills and supportive services to veterans, Brown completed a substance abuse program and enrolled in Southern Wesleyan University, where he is majoring in Business Science and will graduate in May 2010. In addition to going to school, he continues to stay connected to Operation Independence and advocates for those in need of assistance. He also volunteers as a cook at Vet Villa, an organization for vets who are homeless, where Brown also found support in his time of need.

“So often people come into the program and give up and go back to their old habits, but if they had someone willing to lend a helping hand, they would stay,” said Harvey.

“Goodwill helps our nation’s veterans by training them to earn good jobs and by providing them access to resources that stabilize their lives and their families,” said Gibbons. “By donating and shopping at Goodwill, you are playing a role in fulfilling our mission of helping veterans and others who face challenges to finding employment —- so that they can go to work, support themselves and their families, and contribute to the economic health of our country.”

Read more about our services for veterans »

The process at Goodwill started with just a simple application. I received a phone call from Marisa Rodriguez, my placement specialist, to meet with her in her office. We did everything from listing the type of work experience I had to what jobs I would like to do. Marisa and I met weekly to go over job leads and fill out applications.

I was a few months pregnant with my second daughter, so that made my job search harder. But it didn’t stop me from pushing myself and getting the most out of Goodwill.

Latrisha Fisher assists a caller at Austin Travis County Integral Care.

I continued to meet with Marisa every week and apply for jobs. After I gave birth, I took a few weeks to care for my daughter and get situated so that I could get back to my job search through Goodwill.

The last thing Marisa and I worked on was perfecting my résumé. I submitted an application through Austin Travis County Integral Care and it was my résumé alone that got me an interview. Three days later I was scheduled for orientation.

To this day I’ve been employed with my agency for 22 months and I love it! I really like my job and I enjoy the work environment.

Listen to Latrisha tell her story in this week’s My Story Podcast.

“Millions of people visit the Goodwill Industries International web site each year, and more than 80 percent are seeking information about the Goodwills in their communities — where to donate, shop and find job training programs and other support services,” said Jim Gibbons, president and CEO of Goodwill Industries International. “With the site’s redesign, visitors will have an easier time connecting with the Goodwill agencies in their communities and accessing the information they need.”

New navigation, colors and fonts will allow users to more easily access content on the site. Other components include:

• “My Story,” a weekly, mission-focused blog written by individuals whose lives have been impacted by Goodwill.
• A Goodwill locator that allows users to filter results by type of location, including more than 2,300 retail stores, donation centers, and 166 headquarter locations in the United States and Canada.
• Interactive features, including podcasts about people helped by Goodwill, and a means to share and comment on the content as well as spread mission awareness via other social networks.

A preview of the redesigned site was offered to Goodwill’s social media fan base in mid-October through a survey on QuestionForm.com. Exclusive invitations were sent out through the organization’s social network base on Facebook and Twitter. Participating at a higher-than-typical response rate, previewers gave rich feedback, with nearly 90 percent of survey takers reporting that they liked the design, and more than 90 percent saying they would return.

“Our fans and followers took the time to offer their comments and suggestions, demonstrating their commitment and investment in the Goodwill brand,” said Gibbons. “In return, the site features content that describes how Goodwill incorporated the survey suggestions for the formal launch, and we will continue to listen and take action based on visitors’ feedback post-launch.”

The web site serves as the central point for Goodwill Industries® to distribute information about how the organization provides employment placement services and other community-based programs for people who have disabilities, those who lack education or job experience, and others facing employment challenges. Goodwill collects gently used clothing and other household goods, sells the donated items in stores and online, and uses those revenues to train people for careers in a variety of fields and emerging industries.

The site was redesigned by The Matrix Group International, a web development and marketing firm in Arlington, VA.

Read Janie’s story >>

Goodwill expects the donations to generate $12-15 million in revenues. 84 percent of Goodwill’s revenues are directed into employment placement services and other supportive services for people who have disabilities, lack education or job experience, or face employment challenges.

“The Goodwill Sale is a great benefit to our customers and our communities,” said Bud Bergren, president and CEO, The Bon-Ton Stores, Inc. “We want to thank everyone who donated this season. The Goodwill Sale exemplifies our commitment to the communities in which we operate.”

“Partnerships such as the Goodwill Sale engage people in a way that helps Goodwill expand and enhance its career programs in the community, “ said Jim Gibbons, president and CEO of Goodwill Industries International. “We are grateful that Bon-Ton holds this event each season to help individuals in local communities become self-sufficient.”

We launched a preview of the redesign on October 1, to people who follow us on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, and later opened it to everyone who visited our web site. In a little more than a month, we’ve received more than 120 evaluations from people who visited and tested the site for us. And we’ve put in place many of their suggestions, including adding more content about the people we serve, changing the colors of some design elements to make them easier to read and, yes, even correcting a few typos.

We are dedicated to further improving the site and making it a better resource for you — our donors, volunteers, shoppers and program participants. We invite you to give us your opinion and requests for changes by clicking the “Feedback” button on the left side of the page.

But before you complete the form, we’d like to point out a few of our new features:

• The most popular application on our site — the Goodwill locator — is much improved. You can now find nearby retail stores, donation centers, staffing services, outlet stores and community headquarters by simply entering your ZIP Code.

• Our “Success Stories” section is expanded and improved, with more stories from the people we serve. We’ve also launched a “My Story” blog, allowing people to share their experiences with Goodwill, in their own words.

• The “Connect with Us” section is the new home of our social media presence. There, you can connect with other Goodwill supporters on Facebook and Twitter. You will also find a list of blogs written by Goodwills in communities across the United States and Canada, as well as the latest “My Story” posts.

• Our navigation is streamlined to make it easier to find what you want. Are you looking for a volunteer opportunity? Do you want to learn more about Goodwill’s business, contracting and staffing services? How about Goodwill organizations around the world? Looking for tips to help you find a job or links to our many services? They are all here and easy to find.

• Be sure to take our video tour for a full list of new features.

So take a look around the new site and tell us what you think, and if you’ve already filled out a feedback form, we sincerely thank you for your time and assistance in improving www.goodwill.org. In your own way, you’re helping us generate opportunities for people to achieve economic stability and build strong families and vibrant communities.

Sincerely,

The Goodwill Industries International Web Team

“As a company built on values, we have long worked to promote sustainability in how we make our products and run our operations,” said John Anderson, CEO of Levi Strauss & Co. “This initiative uses our global voice to empower hundreds of millions of consumers around the world to join us by providing simple and actionable ways to help care for our planet.”

“A Care Tag for Our Planet is Goodwill’s first partnership of its kind designed to increase the life cycle of clothing and textiles to address the approximately 23.8 billion pounds that end up in U.S. landfills each year,” said Goodwill Industries International CEO and president Jim Gibbons.  “As the ‘Original Recycler,’ 166 community-based Goodwills in the United States and Canada collectively divert more than 1.5 billion pounds of clothing and textiles every year from landfill by recovering the value in people’s unwanted material goods. In addition to funding community-based services, these landfill diversion programs create job-training opportunities for more than 1.5 million people a year.”

“We’re launching with the Levi’s brand as a founding partner because it’s an iconic brand with the ability to make an immediate impact with consumers,” said Goodwill of San Francisco CEO and president Deborah Alvarez-Rodriguez. “Our collective goal is to extend the idea of Care Tags beyond washing, drying and ironing—to encouraging consumers to donate these clothes when no longer needed. By doing so, millions of pounds will be diverted from landfill and thousands of lives will be transformed by the power of work in the Bay Area and across the country.”

The new care tags will be available in Levi’s® retail and wholesale operations the U.S. beginning in January 2010 and the regional and global tags will appear in clothes in Fall 2010.  The Levi’s® brand and Goodwill® will also spread the word to consumers through online viral campaigns and in retail store communications.

This partnership was reached through shared values held by each organization: Levi Strauss & Co.’s goal to reduce the environmental impact of its products and Goodwill’s commitment to help communities recycle usable items while helping those in need. The initiative was conceived by BBDO West, Goodwill of San Francisco’s pro bono agency, which came up with the unique idea to use care tags to communicate this message.

For more than two decades, Levi Strauss & Co. has been a leader on environmental issues. The company was the first to establish requirements for suppliers, guidelines on water quality, and restrictions on the substances that can be used to make its clothes.  To determine where even greater environmental improvements could be made, the company studied every stage in the life cycle of a typical pair of 501 jeans. The findings indicated that one of the greatest opportunities for reducing climate change and water impact happens after consumers take their jeans home.  That’s why, in addition to asking consumers to donate used clothing to keep it out of landfills, Levi’s is encouraging consumers to wash less, wash in cold water and line dry when possible— all of which together reduces your climate impact from washing and drying your Levi’s jeans by more than 50 percent.

For more information about A Care Tag for our Planet, please visit www.levi.com/care.