By: Co-Editor, Bobby B:

Not all fundraising and charitable organizations are long-term ventures. Moreover, these charities have the infrastructure and capital base to last as going concerns. However, many fund-raising/charitable efforts are short-term efforts to raise money for a specific purpose. For example, raising money for individuals with cancer, raising money for accident victims, or raising money for an injured firefighter.

In these circumstances, keeping overhead down and reach donors quickly and efficiently is paramount.

A Chicago based web startup called GiveForward.org is providing an answer for these situations. Started in August of 2008, GiveForward.org provides free personal fundraising pages to individuals to raise money for friends and family members battling illnesses like cancer.

The Chicago Tribune has called GiveForward.org “The future of medical fundraising in the Internet Age.”

GiveForward.org helps individuals raise $10K, $20K and even $30K + to pay for their friends medical expenses. It gives people an easy way to help their friends and loved ones when they need it most.

By incorporating social media such as Facebook and Twitter to help empower users, GiveForward.org raises money from people all over the country for good causes. It is turning the idea that social media is frivolous on its head.

Co-founder Desiree Vargas, worked as a specialist in collegiate entrepreneurship at the Kauffman Foundation in Kansas City and as an independent consultant for Arabella Philanthropic Investment Advisors. Her passion for philanthropy and the role that young and small-scale donors can have on our communities has been a cause celebre. When not working, she spends her time inventing new recipes that don’t always work, walking her golden retriever, Ellie, and going to Zumba. Desiree likes Hangar One, cheese, and kicking Ethan’s butt in bar trivia.

She remembers being distraught when Hurricane Katrina hit because she wanted to employ the same practices we used every day with the few dollars that she personally had to give. But, there was no easy way to give directly to a family wanting to rebuild. Her and her colleagues talked openly about how much more we would give if we knew money wasn’t being lost in the bureaucracy. She thought to that there should be a site where people can give directly to people and causes they care about. Eventually GiveForward.org was born.

A review of the site sees also kinds of spirited individuals stuck on horrible situations not of there own making. With GiveForward.org caring and giving people can reach these people and give then the financial support they need.

Post from: GreatStartups.com

By: Co-Editor, Bobby B:

For one week, millions of young people around the world will join a growing movement of entrepreneurial people, to generate new ideas and to seek better ways of doing things. Countries across six continents are coming together to celebrate Global Entrepreneurship Week, an initiative to inspire young people to embrace innovation, imagination and creativity.

From November 16-22, 2009, Global Entrepreneurship Week will connect young people everywhere through local, national and global activities designed to help them explore their potential as self-starters and innovators. Students, educators, entrepreneurs, business leaders, employees, non-profit leaders, government officials and many others will participate in a range of activities, from online to face-to-face, and from large-scale competitions and events to intimate networking gatherings.

Global Entrepreneurship Week 2008 was a great success and a brilliant example of what can be achieved by bringing together different ideas and cultures around the theme of enterprise. In 2009, the goal is to unleash young people’s ideas around the issues that matter most to society, from poverty reduction through to climate change, and to foster a global culture which recognizes entrepreneurs as drivers of economic and social prosperity.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton videotaped a public statement of support for the Kauffman Foundation’s Global Entrepreneurship Week, praising its efforts to create new opportunities and businesses; encourage youth to pursue fresh ideas; and improve the global economy. This year, Global Entrepreneurship Week will be celebrated by more than three million people and 8,800 organizations (1000+ in the U.S.) in 85 countries.

Global Entrepreneurship Week is the vision of the Kauffman Foundation, the world’s leading foundation for entrepreneurship and Make Your Mark the UK’s campaign to give young people the confidence, skills and ambition to make their ideas happen.

The campaign is backed by an unprecedented coalition of businesses, charities, education bodies and government - it’s unique in being young-people focused, business-led and government-backed. It is funded by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and was founded by the four main UK business organizations - the British Chambers of Commerce, CBI, Federation of Small Businesses and Institute of Directors. Make Your Mark leads a campaign coalition of 25 national organizations from education, the voluntary sector, business and government.

Post from: GreatStartups.com