If you know me, or read this blog, you know that I LOVE supporting good causes and I also LOVE a chance to win things. Last year, I came across the Passports with Purpose fundraiser for Room to Read, an organization that supports literacy programs in the developing world. Passports with Purpose is an annual travel bloggers’ fundraiser with a chance to win great prizes with as little as a $10 donation. As I always say, you have to be in it to win it! (I actually won 2 prizes last year with a $50 donation! A Toronto weekend from Near.Afar and some awesome stuff from Grand Trunk from the Wandering Educators!)
This year’s fundraiser aims to raise $100,000 to build five wells in Haiti through our partnership with Water.org. The project will provide clean water to thousands of people — and it’s got a sustainability plan baked in. Water.org works closely with their beneficiaries, engaging the communities they help by training them in maintenance, recruiting local stewards for their projects, and providing education programs.
Go to this link to give. They have an amazing line up of prizes and just a $10 donation gives you a shot at getting one of them. Proceeds go directly to Water.org, so it’s also tax deductible — and is likely meet your employer’s matching guidelines if you’ve got that option. (That would be a WIN-WIN-WIN!)
PureWow! also had some great new ideas for new ways to give microdonations–the regular giving of small amounts that actually do a large amount of good. Check out:
> Watsi Like Kickstarter for charity, this new nonprofit enables you to directly fund low-cost, high-impact medical treatments for people in need. (For instance, you can donate as little as $1 to help a 12-year-old Nepalese child get a life-changing heart surgery.) Many treatments are already fully funded, but the site adds new requests daily.
> Snoball When you create a Snoball account, you instantly have the ability to pledge to over 1.7 million nonprofits, with all of your giving managed in one central location. Using the platform, you can create a parameter for giving known as a ‘Snoball.’ Snoballs define a specific condition of a donation and can be tied to a user’s interests. For example, a Snoball may be defined as: “Every time the Dallas Cowboys win, I will pledge $1 to the American Red Cross,” or “When I check-in at my favorite coffee shop using Foursquare, I will pledge $2 to the local area food bank.” The specific event, donation amount and time interval are defined by you. (Some challenges may be matched!)
> Instead This new app for iPhone and Android encourages you to give up small, unnecessary luxuries (that $3 latte, a pricey lunch) and instead give the money to the charity of your choice with just a few taps.
Has anyone tried any of these services/sites? What do you think? Worth it? I like the ideas for sure! I think Snoball is interesting when you are doing fundraising. Maybe I will try it for my Cycle for Survival ride in February!
I found a bunch of cool gifts that give back and an awesome sweepstakes from Saucony, too!
> Check out the Gilt (Red) shop. Fight against AIDS, find something for everyone on your list at Gilt prices! They’ve teamed up with (RED) to curate our exclusive shop featuring (PRODUCT)RED items, likeskateboards from Girl, Mophie electronics and more. BUY (RED).
> In October, Saucony asked their FB fans for great gift suggestions for runners. Then they made a list of 26 favorite suggestions and now they are giving it all away! Enter once and be eligible for all remaining prizes! You must be on FB to enter. Click this link to enter. (Click Saucony marathon of giving to learn about the awesome prizes!)
> Need a gift for someone in Chicago or visit often? Love architecture? Check out CAF’s Membership Gift Set for only $99 (a $250 value!) Includes: CAF Membership Gift Certificate, CAF Icon Umbrella, CAF Icon Eco Bag, CAF Icon Journal and Vapur Collapsible Water Bottle (+ LOTS of benefits with membership!)
> Another awesome one in Chicago: Artizone Chicago is offering $10 off an order of $50 or more on awesome foodie gifts and local food with code LVP64PLTUP. And don’t forget to check the box that says, “I want to be Part of the Loop” to support our partnership with Lakeview Pantry. Offer ends 12/8.
Other cool deals for the holidays or for you!
>Rume has 50% off on custom items – bags and iphone cases – how fun is that? Good through Monday, December 10th.
> OK – here’s a no brainer! $10 gift card with $50 purchase at Target! Just print the coupon and present when you check out!
> Gilt City has great national deals at Red Envelope and Cakestyle. They have $50 for $100 or $100 for $200 at Red Envelope – my go to place for baby gifts and other fun stuff- or $150 for $300 for personal shopper picked items from Cakestyle!. Check it out!
> For the runners in your life, Roadrunner Sports has 15% off sale items and free shipping with the code CX12N312.
> Need a creative and cool gift? Check out the Artist edition ipad 2/3/4 cases from DODOcase and use code SHIP4FREE at checkout for free shipping. I love my dodocase!
> Is all of this shopping making you hungry? Earnest Eats will “gift” you a FREE 5 ct. Holiday Pack of their popular Earnest Eats Baked Whole Food Bars from their online store. Plus, all orders over $20 get FREE shipping! Enter the discount code GIFTME at checkout.
Last thing, I also found a few more healthy gift lists from MindBodyGreen, Well+Good NYC (under $30!) and Health magazine!
Have a great weekend! I will be back with a full report from Dallas on Sunday!