DALLAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Stand Together and NFL Hall of Famer and Network Analyst Deion Sanders this morning launched Stand Together’s Make It Count initiative, asking shoppers to donate the difference of their Black Friday savings to nonprofits that are transforming lives and helping people in Dallas and across the country out of poverty.
Stand Together, a social change organization committed to breaking the cycle of poverty, kicked off the national campaign at Stonebriar Centre in Frisco, where Sanders surprised shoppers who donated on the spot. Through Giving Tuesday on Nov. 27, Stand Together will match all donations made through the campaign platform standtogetheragainstpoverty.org. In 2017, Dallas ranked among the top five most generous cities in the nation and local organizations have been working to leverage Giving Tuesday to become the top city.
“This holiday season, I ask people to consider the impact their shopping savings could have on the 39 million people who are living in poverty across America,” Sanders said. “I am partnering with Stand Together again for the Make It Count campaign, which takes the guesswork out of where to go to make a difference in communities across the country. They have a network of organizations who have made it their mission to fight poverty in the most effective ways.”
The campaign spotlights more than 50 organizations across the country that Stand Together has recognized for demonstrating their ability to help solve the nation’s toughest problems and help people improve their lives.
“We are proud to kick off our Make It Count campaign here in Dallas, one of the most generous cities in the nation,” said Evan Feinberg, Stand Together executive director. “Through this initiative, we plan to make the generosity of people in Dallas, and across the country, go further so that we can all create bigger impact. Through these gifts, we will help some of the most innovative and effective social change entrepreneurs across the country scale their impact and ultimately help more people.”
In the network is Cafe Momentum, a Dallas-based, restaurant and culinary training facility transforming the lives of young people who have spent time in juvenile facilities. Chad Houser, founder and CEO of Café Momentum, leads an operation to provide the kids a positive environment, paid internship that involves intensive culinary, job and life-skill training, as well as continued mentorship and support.
“Everything we do in this restaurant is designed to build momentum so that when these kids leave they are on a trajectory to meet their full potential. We believe in them and we want to empower them to define themselves and their future,” Houser said. “This is our way of trying to fix the problems with the criminal justice system. While about half of the kids released from juvenile facilities in Texas end up back there within a year, 85 percent of our kids never go back.”
Americans are expected to spend more than $7 billion this Black Friday. On Cyber Monday, Stand Together will call on online shoppers to also donate a portion of their purchase savings. In 2017, online transactions in the U.S. reached a record $6.59 billion on Cyber Monday. That same year, on Giving Tuesday, initiatives raised more than $274 million from more than 2.5 million contributions. Stand Together hopes to build on these successes as the Make It Count campaign continues through Giving Tuesday.
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About Stand Together
Stand Together is a social change organization committed to breaking the cycle of poverty by supporting the creative solutions of individuals and communities around the country. Founded in 2016, Stand Together is redefining the way that social change happens by identifying and supporting social entrepreneurs and community-based solutions that help people in poverty transform their lives.
