NASHVILLE - RetailROI (the Retail Orphan Initiative), aimed at raising awareness of adoption issues and helping provide lasting solutions for vulnerable children worldwide, today announced the selection of four deserving organizations to receive the charity's initial grants. One of the organizations' founding goals is to focus grant efforts on groups doing effective and innovative work in the area of orphan care and adoption, rather than others who have high administrative costs. After just four short months since its formation, RetailROI has raised enough money to provide assistance to four deserving organizations.
The organizations receiving the first RetailROI grants include:
- 4KIDS of South Florida - Provides licensed foster homes, family-style residences and adoption support for foster kids in Florida. www.4kidsofsfl.org
- LifeSong for Orphans - Offers no-interest loans and grants to couples who wish to adopt. www.lifesongforphans.org
- Share the Blessings - Provides education and clean water projects throughout Uganda. www.share-the-blessings.org
- Warm Blankets Orphan Care International - Restores the lives of orphans in partnership with churches, corporations, organizations and individuals who have a passion to help needy, parentless children. www.warmblankets.org
"We are humbled to be able to make these first four gifts in such a short time, gifts that we know will save lives through the innovative work of these organizations." said Greg Buzek, founder and president, IHL Group and co-founder of RetailROI. "There are 143 million orphans and 400 million vulnerable children in the world. With ongoing support from the retail community, RetailROI can continue giving funds to important organizations like these who are on the front lines in care for orphans and adoption."
"As a retailer who is also privileged to be involved with Share the Blessings, I know these first donations will have a big impact," said Ed Collupy, VP of Information Technology, The Pantry, Inc. "I encourage others in the retail community to get behind the work of RetailROI. Working together, we can begin to make a HUGE difference."
RetailROI solicits donations from retailers, vendors and employees. However, its long-term goal is to create programs such as "RoundUp for Orphans" at the point of sale, in which customers can round up their transactions to the nearest dollar to support the fund, or custom multi-retailer gift cards that would dedicate a portion of the sales to RetailROI. For more information about how you can get involved, please visit www.retailROI.org
About RetailROI
RetailROI is a charitable foundation established to help the 400 million orphaned and vulnerable children worldwide; the organization recently launched its site, www.retailROI.org. Created under the umbrella of The Giving Back Fund, RetailROI provides grants to charities that provide hands-on efforts in the following areas:
- Orphan Care (food, shelter, medical, clothing, education)
- Foster Care support organizations
- Adoption support organizations
- Grants and zero-interest loans for adoption
- Child rescue from human trafficking
- Life skills training for orphaned and vulnerable children
RetailROI has grown out of the work that Paul Singer, former SVP and CIO of SUPERVALU, has done in support of orphans.
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