ROCKVILLE, MD — StayClassy, a leader in social fundraising for nonprofits, has announced that public voting has determined Goodwill Industries International as one of the 3rd Annual CLASSY Awards Top 10 Finalists for Most Effective Awareness Campaign By A Charity.
The CLASSY Awards are the largest philanthropic awards ceremony in the country, recognizing the most outstanding philanthropic achievements by charities, businesses and individuals nationwide. From July 25 to August 26, voting was opened to the public to determine the Top 10 Finalists.
With more than 2,000 nominations submitted to StayClassy for consideration, Goodwill Industries International has been through a long process to make it to the final round, including garnering at least 100 Facebook ‘Likes’ on their nomination story, being chosen as a Top 25 Finalist during an initial judging round, and being voted to the Top 10 Finalist category.
The Donate Movement was nominated for the “Most Effective Awareness Campaign.” In June 2010, Goodwill® launched the Donate Movement at its annual general meeting for 400 of its senior leadership. Goodwill’s goal for the Donate Movement was to raise awareness of the power of donating used goods, and its vision is to create a more conscious donor. To spread the word about the Donate Movement, Goodwill unveiled a new icon comparable to the recycling symbol, the Donate icon. In addition, the agency launched its Donation Impact Calculator (patent pending), which allows donors to see exactly how their donations equate to Goodwill job training programs and employment placement services for people in their communities. As the Donate Movement gained momentum, major corporations and a Certified Professional Organizer® and best-selling author joined forces with Goodwill to encourage donations. Lorie Marrero, author of The Clutter Diet, signed on as the spokesperson and ambassador for the Donate Movement.
Additionally, the following organizations have partnered with Goodwill:
- Levi Strauss & Co.: As the movement’s first partner, the clothing manufacturer launched “A Care Tag for Our Planet” and began including messaging on product care tags, encouraging people to donate to Goodwill to increase the lifecycle of clothing and textiles.
- Family Circle: Goodwill teamed up with the national magazine to encourage readers to organize “Back to School” donation drives, resulting in approximately 20 million pounds of clothing being diverted from landfills.
- Gap® invited U.S. and Canadian customers to donate clothing for the Donate Movement, encouraging consumers to clean out their closets for a cause. Focusing the social impact of a donation, Gap and Goodwill focused on job training support for youth in their communities.
- Hanes®: The clothing manufacturer partnered with Goodwill, deeming March national “Clean out Your Drawers Month.” Celebrities Bethenny Frankel and Michael Moloney provided tips on how to de-clutter and organize for spring. The campaign encouraged people to donate the items they no longer use to Goodwill.
- Planet Green™: The television network devoted to conscious living leveraged its multi-media platform and 56 million home reach to spread the message about the positive impact donations have on communities and the environment.
Currently, Goodwill Industries International ranks 4th out of the top 10 in its category. A combination of public votes and a decision by a panel of industry professionals will determine whether Goodwill Industries International will be a CLASSY Award Winner for Most Effective Awareness Campaign By A Charity. The winners will be recognized live on-stage at the CLASSY Awards ceremony in San Diego this September 17, in which $150,000 in cash and prizes will be donated to support the causes of the 12 National CLASSY Awards Winners.
“The Donate Movement has been integral in expanding Goodwill’s reach. In 2010, Goodwill Industries® diverted more than 2 billion pounds of used goods from landfills, raising $2.7 billion to fund valuable job training and community-based services for people who face challenges to finding employment. In turn, Goodwill was able to serve 2.4 million people, a 26 percent increase over 2009,” said Jim Gibbons, president and CEO of Goodwill Industries International. “The number of people donating to Goodwill also increased, from 56 million in 2009 to 74 million in 2010, and Goodwill agencies added more than 6,000 jobs last year, further fueling their local economies.”
A Charitable Event to Remember
Tickets are now available for the 3rd Annual CLASSY Awards ceremony on Saturday, September 17 in San Diego, California. Those that want to support Goodwill Industries International and attend the event can purchase tickets by visiting www.classyawards.org. General admission tickets start at $50 and gain you entry into the CLASSY Collaborative, Ceremony and After-Party.
The CLASSY Collaborative, a day-long networking event, will be held on Friday, September 16 at the W Hotel San Diego. Participants will have the opportunity to meet, mingle and share ideas with some of the foremost leaders in philanthropy, technology, innovation and entertainment.
Speakers at the ceremony will include, Adam Garone, CEO and Co-Founder of Movember, Tabreez Verjee, President and Director, Betawave, Premal Shah, President of Kiva.org, Jake Woods, Co-Founder of Team Rubicon, Ben Keesey, CEO of InvisibleChildren, Chris Carver, COO of Invisible Children, Yael Cohen, founder of F Cancer, William McNulty, founder of Team Rubicon, Alex Bard, founder of Assistly, Jeff Rosenthal, founder of Summit Series, Barrington Irving, founder of Experience Aviation, Natalie Spilger, founder of Green Laces, Josh Warren, Resource Development Director of The DREAM Program, Inc., Scott and Gina Keatley, co-founders of Nourishing NYC, and Dan Novak, VP Global Marketing, PR & Communications of Qualcomm.
CLASSY Awards partners include: Southwest Airlines, Qualcomm, Bridgepoint Education, NBC Local Media, PayPal, Huffington Post Impact, NexGen Charity, The Chronicle of Philanthropy, Guidestar.org, Legalzoom, HandsOn Network, Young Nonprofit Professionals Network. For additional information on the competition, event details, and to make your nominations, please visit www.classyawards.org or email.
