'Our World Gives'
Provides $50,000 Grant, While Heightening Awareness of Social Issues
amongst Facebook Community
ENGLEWOOD, Colo., Oct 27, 2008 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) and the Western Union Foundation today announced the launch of a new online platform for social giving, 'Our World Gives': http://apps.facebook.com/ourworldgives. Aimed at reaching the 18 million members of the Facebook social networking site, the program seeks to increase awareness of critical social issues and charitable community spirit.
"The Foundation identified eight non-profits that align with Western Union's Our World, Our Family program by creating economic opportunity for those most in need," said Luella Chavez D'Angelo, president, The Western Union Foundation. "Understanding how important it is to raise awareness for these organizations, we decided to harness the power of Facebook to spread the word and -- in the process -- allow Facebook users to make a significant contribution to a deserving organization."
Participating non-profit organizations include: Accion USA, American Red Cross, CARE, Mercy Corps, Room to Read, US Fund for UNICEF, Opportunity International and World Vision.
The Our World Gives program invites Facebook members to "Do a good deed today" by mobilizing friends and family members to vote for one of the eight designated non-profit organizations. The organization with the most votes at the end of six weeks will receive a $50,000 donation from The Western Union Foundation.
"Regardless of which organization is ultimately selected for the $50,000 donation, we believe it will benefit all involved," continued D'Angelo. "The program will highlight the incredible work these organizations do around the world and will hopefully encourage individuals to become more involved. We believe awareness is the first step toward engagement."
'Our World Gives' is part of Western Union's Our World, Our FamilySM program -- a five-year, $50 million commitment to facilitating global economic opportunity and helping migrants and their families stay connected, overcome barriers and realize their dreams. Our World, Our Family is designed to reach people on every rung of the economic ladder.
For more information regarding Our World, Our Family, please visit westernunion.com/foundation.
For more information on participating nonprofit organizations, please visit the following websites:
Accion USA -- http://www.accionusa.org; American Red Cross -- http://www.redcross.org; CARE -- http://www.care.org; Mercy Corps -- http://www.mercycorps.org; Room to Read -- http://www.roomtoread.org; US Fund for UNICEF -- http://www.unicefusa.org; Opportunity International - http://www.opportunity.org; World Vision -- http://www.worldvision.org
About the Western Union Foundation
Through the donations of The Western Union Company, its employees and Agents, the Western Union Foundation helps to fund programs that create economic opportunity around the world. Embracing the truly global nature of its corporate sponsor, the Western Union Foundation has granted nearly $48 million to more than 1,750 nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) in 70 countries. For more information, visit foundation.westernunion.com
About Western Union
The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) is a leader in global money transfer services. Together with its affiliates, Orlandi Valuta and Vigo, Western Union provides consumers with fast, reliable and convenient ways to send and receive money around the world, as well as send payments and purchase money orders. It operates through a network of more than 365,000 Agent locations in over 200 countries and territories. Famous for its pioneering telegraph services, the original Western Union dates back to 1851. For more information, visit www.westernunion.com.
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SOURCE: The Western Union Company
The Western Union Company Sherry Johnson, 720-332-4750 Sherry.l.johnson@westernunion.com