LAVISH GIVING
{please visit lavish giving here}
We may have immediately thought of the Do-Gooder on your list when Jane Pennells of Lavish Giving contacted us to participate in The Bright Side Project, but you have got to be allergic to good taste and fabulous design to disparage anything Pennells is selling. People, she carries Jonathan Adler.
I could end the post right now–if I were reading I would already be at the bottom of the page figuring out how to win Jonathan Adler–but I should at least mention a little bit about the whole lotta good Pennells is doing with Lavish Giving. You can read her inspiring bio here (and marvel at Pennells’s absolutely stunning visage while you’re at it), but the short story is that Pennell walked away from a battle against crazy-sexy cancer with her head held high and a clean bill of health. Inspired by the tireless caregivers who supported her during this time (and saddened by the loss of her brother and a close friend from the same disease), Pennell teamed up with similarly altruistic companies to create Lavish Giving. Every time you spend $100, you receive back 10% of your purchase in the form of a Good Card which is redeemed through NetworkForGood.org and donated to ANY registered non-profit in the US. If that isn’t enough to squeeze your heart, Lavish Giving recently launched a new PLEDGE PROGRAM, where any non profit organization can register at no charge and receive their own unique url with a front page to the site. Instead of giving Good Cards, Lavish Giving donates 10% of the total purchases made by customers entering the site through that page. It’s fundraising without effort, and is perfect for school PTA fundraisers, teams running in fundraising events and smaller grass roots organizations. Good design and good deeds–what more would a do-gooder like yourself like?
Lavish Giving is giving away to one winner two gift certificates, good for anything in the shop, one for $100 and one for $50. Additionally, Lavish Giving is also offering 15% off any order over $50 through November 30 with the coupon code SUNSHINE at check out. In order to win, please answer the following question by Wednesday, November 18, 2009.
If you win this prize, which charity(ies) will you donate your Good Card funds to, and why?
Please start checking the winner’s box on Wednesday, November 25, 2009 to see if you won. Good Luck!
I would love to be able to give money to our school’s science and engineering charity “Minds of Tomorrow” which assists under-funded schools in bringing the science and engineering materials and in-class assistence from college students to their students that they otherwise would have to forego.
I would give my card to the Heifer Project which allows families all over the world to get farm animals that they raise for food. (Milk and eggs). You know, teach a man to fish…..The recipient is required to pass a farm animal offspring to another family so the gift keeps on giving! I love this idea!
I would give to: CARE and the Humane Society of the US.
CARE helps poor women and girls in developing nations lift themselves out of poverty. They not only provide immediate relief, but also provide tools, resources and education to women and girls who are often secondary to men in their communities. I’ve loved hearing success stories, like how CARE helps prevent maternal death in Peru; it starts with teaching one woman in a village how to take care of herself during her pregnancy and upon success, she spreads that to her peers. CARE gives women and girls hope and the opportunity to go above and beyond their dreams.
HSUS is a great organization and being an animal lover, I wholeheartedly support their efforts in bringing awareness. We should support adoption, not breeding!
If I won I’d split my donation between my local Planned Parenthood chapter, who is opening a new clinic in one of our poorest neighborhoods in order to provide much needed healthcare for low/no money, and Bradley-Angle House, the local domestic violence shelter that I used to work with. Both organizations do a lot of good locally and need a lot of help in these trying economic times.
sometimes an organization comes into your life only because it has to, because the tragedies of life leave you facing things you never imagined could be. like comfort zone camp. a FREE bereavement camp for children ages 7-17, held throughout the US, offering grieving children a place where losing a parent or sibling doesn’t make you different from everyone else. i wish such a place didn’t have to exist, that children didn’t have to face such harsh realities but when they do, i am eternally grateful ccz is there.
I would give to Literature for All of Us. It is a program that offers book groups and writing workshops to teen mothers in Chicago who are working toward their GED. The poetry that these women write is lovely and inspiring–many of them write about painful experiences that they are struggling to overcome, and many write about the better lives that they want for their children. I’ve heard some of these women speak at Literature for All of Us events, and it is clear that this program makes them feel like they have a voice, that they have a community, and that people care about them. My aunt started this organization, and I am so proud of her!
I would give mine to the Summit House. I local home who gives a second chance to moms.
Recently, my county decided to cut its animal control operations to help ease its budget woes–hoping that the local Humane Society could take over its functions. The cut only saves the county $2 million per year, but they decided to cut either animal control or their programs to help battered women, anyway (not surprising that they devalue those programs :P). Therefore, I would donate my Good Card to the Humane Society–they’re going to need it!
My donation would go to WQED of Pittsburgh.
I grew up in Pittsburgh and on a healthy dose of Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood, which was produced at WQED.
They continue to create some pretty amazing programming, and I would like to keep them going.
There are so many great charities. But of all of them, I believe I would give to NARSAD. It took a loved one being diagnosed with mental illness for me to understand the great need. Mental illness – though misunderstood- is just as real, just as urgent as poverty, physical illness, and social injustice. Only a loved one with mental illness is no longer with you, even if you’re standing side-by-side …
Newmarket Community Education Partnership.
I simply LOVE living in a small New Hampshire town and having my children in a small school system. The downside is the minimal funding that is available. This grass roots organization has done so much to mobilize the residents and gather money for educational improvements. It took a few concerned parents to get it going and it has made an enormous impact. The people involved donate their time and energy for the benefit of the children. As a parent and as an educator myself, the hard reality is that sometimes money does matter. This is one of those charities that puts it ALL to good use. I love that!!!
I spent my first few years in the workforce with an organization called The ALS Association. ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease, is an always fatal disease with no known cause and no known cure. It is almost completely sporadic, with only 10% of the cases being hereditary. It’s a devestating disease and they need as much help with research and political policy as they can to move forward in figuring out how to save the lives of people diagnosed with it. More importantly, the organization needs money so they can provide care to the patients. You can find out more at http://www.alsa.org.
As a childhood cancer survivor, I would definitely pass it on to an organization like Make A Wish or St Jude’s Cancer Research.
I’d really like to donate this gift certificate to our local children’s hospital. It makes me so sad to see a sick child who in unable to live the “normal” childhood that so many of us did.
If I won this prize, I would donate the Good Card funds to Project Open Hand, which is a fabulous organization in San Francisco that provides groceries, meals, and basic care for people living with AIDS/HIV. I’ve volunteered there several times and am always so blessed to be a part of their amazing work in the city.
If I won, I would donate to Compassion International. They are an absolutely amazing organization which helps helps children around the world break out of the poverty cycle. They are helping over 1 million children, giving them nutritious food, clean water, clothes, education, and also helping their parents.
I would donate to Make It Right because there is still so much more that needs to be do to help rebuild New Orleans’ Lower Ninth Ward.
Covenant House – because I work for a Canadian branch and I know what amazing work they do with homeless and street involved youth. They become a family for kids who don’t have one.
The food bank of NJ/NY/CT. Last year was a horrible year for them (all food banks) and this year is only relatively better. Their warehouses were empty for so long. And because of the food banks were unable to distribute food to shelters, churches etc. And people went hungry, and that’s one of the most horrible feelings ever.
The Arrow Project, a Christian foster-care organization. I have so many friends who are involved in this organization or who have been touched by foster care, and I’d love to be able to give to this project to help them continue the good work they are doing. Foster care is something that my husband and I have considered, and we want to dip into this in the future, but for now giving support to our friends and money to the organization is the best way we can help them all.
this isn’t very unique, but i’d give to a cancer charity of some kind. i work in Oncology, with patients undergoing active treatment, and i’d love to contribute on their behalf…i see so much courage, vulnerability, and strength every day. just an example of someplace i’d donate to: a foundation i just recently discovered, Cleaning For a Reason, works with local maid services all over the country to provide a limited number of house cleanings free of charge to women going through chemotherapy…what a great cause!
I’m sure I’m not the first to say this, but I would give to the Humane Society of the US. I would also give to Best Friends Animal Sanctuary (the shelter in “Dogtown” on tv). They were the ones who convinced the judge in Virginia that the “vicious” dogs from Michael Vick’s home didn’t need to be destroyed; that even though the judge mandated that these dogs could never be rehomed, they could live the rest of their lives at Best Friends.
I would donate my Good Card funds to the Community Foundation for Northeast Georgia, Gwinnett County Public Library Fund. Right now, with this recession, it’s not just people who are hurting, but cities and counties as well. In my county, tax revenues are so down, the local libraries are operating on extremely reduced hours and are closed several days a week as well as cutting back on services and programs. This is a real hardship for the community as a whole and I would donate the funds o hopefully be able to restore some of the programs.
i’d like to give it to the humane society
i would donate to the Invisible Children Org. too few people know about this one, and too few people know about what is going on in Africa. Thousands of children being kidnapped and made into soldiers, most having killed by the time they are 13 and turned out by the very “army” they served by the time they’re 23, having know where to go and having seen true horror. Invisible Children helps the refugess earn money since the government wont let them go back home from the camps, they help to keep teh children safe and help rehibilitate those that are set free or escape.
I would donate my money to the Fisher House Foundation which provides free or low cost housing for veterans and their families while the soldiers are receiving treatment at military health centers.
I would give it to an organization called Mother’s without Borders. It’s a group of dentists that go to Central America and provides dental care to people. My husband is in dental school now, and we have gone on three trips and have gained more out of serving than probably the people we are serving.
I would give to Spokanimal, a local animal shelter, in the hopes that some of the money would go toward expanding their facility. Right now, they are in such a small building that they are euthanizing cats the very day they are brought in because they don’t have room to house them. Even the healthy cats and the ones that aren’t feral–they are dying needlessly, with no chance at finding a home, and it breaks my heart.
I would donate my card to Women to Women. They are an organization that helps women around the world regain their dignity by teaching the skills to earn their own living and support themselves and families.
If I was chosen to win, I would donate my card to The Wounded Warrior Project, a charity that benefits veterans who have been injured while serving their country during this time of war. My brother is a veteran of this war, and this charity does amazing work.
I volunteer at Aids Outreach Center, mainly delivering food. Sometimes the meals we deliver are shamefully scarce. I am doing what I can to fix it, but the center needs more help. I would donate my card to the AOC food pantry to make sure these people have enough to eat.
I think Smile Train does so much good. They provide cleft lip and palate surgeries to children in need. I love how complete this donation is. $250 dollars takes care of the entire surgery and can change the patient’s life (and their families) forever. I also love that it can’t be taken away. It’s the ultimate gift that keeps giving. Thanks!
I would give my card to Hospice Of The FingerLakes. They helped me take care of my parents as they died, I don’t know what I would have done without them.
The Ronald McDonald House Charities because they give families a free or inexpensive place to stay when their loved ones are in the hospital. you usually see Ronald McDonald Houses near children’s hospitals in the US
I would donate to a local dog rescue organization called Barks of Love. They are strictly volunteer run and work hard to save dogs from being put down and find foster homes and permanent homes for them. They could really use any and all funds! :)
What a wonderful way to give back. Why don’t more companies do this?
I would give my card to Wisconsin Nicaragua Partners. They promote mutual understanding among citizens and institutions of Wisconsin and Nicaragua by promoting self-help attitudes and long-term sustainability. I myself volunteer for a small organization that provides relief to impoverished Nicaraguan communities, and we dream of one day becoming a non-profit organization as wonderful as Wisconsin-Nicaragua Partners. Until then, I would love to support my fellow humanitarians!
I would donate my card to 826! – a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting students ages 6-18 with their creative and expository writing skills, and to helping teachers inspire their students to write.
It’s a great resource for both students and teachers and the staff’s imagination and creativity never ceases to amaze me!
I would donate to either The Haven Society, a local battered women and childrens’ shelter, or breast cancer research, always a good cause.
I would give to my local women’s shelter. It is for homeless women and their children. If they don’t some help, I don’t know who does.
[...] enchanted with Jane Pennells of Lavish Giving after we wrote about her altruistic company earlier this month, you will be now. We just received one of the most generous BSP reader coupon codes from Jane, [...]