Check Mate! Chess for Success Now Live On CafeGive!

Meet Suzie (name changed), she goes to a local elementary school in Portland, OR where 80% of the children receive free breakfast and lunch. She lives with her mom, after her father left them in the middle of the night, taking all their money and their car when she was younger. Thanks to Chess for Success, Suzie went from being a shy fourth grader to a confident fifth grader and a State Champion Chess Player. Chess for Success is an outgrowth of the Portland Chess Project, an after-school chess program founded in 1992.

Chess For Success helps children, like Suzie, develop skills necessary for success in school and life by learning chess. The organization has a presence in 52 schools in Oregon and is teaching over 2,100 children the game of chess. By providing children with a fun, competitive and appealing after-school program, it is easy to see why they keep coming back for more. This program promotes healthy development, enriches their lives, and entices them to attend school so they can keep playing. Chess is proven to enhance cognitive, emotion, and social development of children, hile giving children a sense of self-confidence, patience, self-control and responsibility. Without realizing it, children also develop comprehension, problem solving and anger management skills.

Help support Chess for Success’ mission by checking out their profile page on CafeGive, advocating for them and purchasing products like books on chess and other games under the Books, Music, Entertainment tab.

Interested in learning more about CafeGive? Check out our website, Facebook Fan page, blog or Twitter.

Play Chess? Lest us know by leaving a comment below!

Advocate Community News: November 2009

shop 170+ stores to get ready for the holidays!

Shop CafeGive to find all the items you need to be ready for the holidays and winter weather. You'll purchase directly from the online stores so there's no extra cost to you AND you'll be earning for your cause.

• party planning -- invitations, flowers, cooking items, home decor, etc.
• holiday spirit -- books, music and more
• ready for winter -- winterize your home, prep your garden, gear up for snow fun
• travel & entertainment for the holidays -- airlines, car rentals, hotels, and vacation packages
• gifts -- top brands and boutique brands to meet all your gift giving needs

Shop now to earn for your cause!

extra earnings at CafeGive It's not too late to take advantage of this special promotion. All purchases through November 30th qualify for an EXTRA $1 for your cause. You shop ...your cause earns ... everyone wins!

causes receive earnings CafeGive proudly distributed checks to causes for earnings from the first quarter of beta. Congratulations to everyone that helped contribute to earnings by shopping! Do your part for this quarter's earnings by browsing the great stores found on CafeGive and by doing your online shopping through CafeGive!

Tiny Prints is Now Available

Earn 8% For Your Cause

  Tiny Prints lets your style shine with fresh designs, exceptional service

and premium quality stationery products.
To find thousands of premium Tiny Prints holiday photo cards,

seasonal party invitations, greeting cards, announcements and more,
visit cafegive.com now and start earning for your cause today!

Opening Eyes at CafeGive with the Sankara Eye Foundation

When I was in elementary school, I had a lazy eye.  Yes, I was the kid with the weird flesh colored eye patch (way before Captain Jack Sparrow made them cool).  Lucky for me, my parents recognized this early and I got the care I needed quickly.  Now I’m proud to say I have 20/20 vision.  Some people aren’t so lucky, that is where Sankara Eye Foundation comes in.

Sankara Eye Foundation has a mission to realize the goal of 20/20 vision for the people of India by the year 2020.  Sankara Eye Foundation initiates and drives community eye care activities in India by working with eye care organizations like the Sankara Eye Care Institution, which runs the Sankara Eye Hospital in Coimbatore, India.

While a majority of Sankara Eye Foundation’s fundraising comes from events, booths, advertising and working with donors, they are trying something new  by teaming up with CafeGive.  We are glad to have them as part of our community.  Sankara Eye Foundation strives to provide  70,000 free surgeries annually, CafeGive  hopes to help Sankara Eye Foundation reach their goal and perhaps even exceed it.

Help support Sankara Eye Foundation by checking out their profile page on CafeGive, advocating for them and purchasing products like eye and sunglasses from Nine West and Forzieri.com.

Interested in learning more about CafeGive?  Check out our website, Facebook Fan page, blog and Twitter.

Involved with Sankara Eye Foundation or CafeGive?  Or another international cause?  We want to know, leave a comment here on the blog.

CafeGive Non-Profit's Receive Checks!

When we went live just a short time ago, we were inspired by the idea of helping our causes raise funds. That inspiration became reality when we recently delivered checks for the first quarter of earnings. Check out the photos showing the results of our workand your shopping:

SOLV

MountainStar Family Relief Nursery

AfricaBridge

You’ve been advocating, widget building, shopping, and helping spread the news about CafeGive and your causes!  We’d like to say THANK YOU!  Give yourself a pat on the back!  Boy does it feel good to make a difference in this world. Some of the money raised  will go to help keep Oregon green, help children and parents build successful families, and help children in Africa overcome the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Could we get a larger cross section of how CafeGive and our advocates are changing the world just by shopping?  I don’t think so!

While CafeGive is still in beta, we’d like to share our success stories with you.  Because let’s be honest, you’re our first place runners and our cheerleaders.  We are inspired and hope you are as well.  Keep up the good work!  And for those of you who have checked out cafegive.com but haven’t made a profile, created a widget or shopped, now’s  a perfect time to join in the celebration.  What better way to start off the holiday season then by supporting a great cause?

Interested in learning more about CafeGive?  Check out our website, blog, Facebook Fan page, or Twitter?

Cheer us (and our advocates) on by leaving an encouraging message in the comment section below!

OFI's Blog Post About CafeGive

Check out Orangutan Foundation International's blog post about CafeGive:

"ONLINE SHOPPING THURSDAY THURSDAY November 5, 2009

Hey Everyone! Alright we posted a couple things yesterday on our FACEBOOK page:
http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/pages/Orangutan-Foundation-International/68791616148?ref=ts

about something called CAFE GIVE

What is CAFE GIVE?

Cafe Give is an organization that connects individuals to non-profits through online shopping! sounds crazy right?

Well the holidays are coming up and OFI has teamed up with CAFE GIVE.

This means…
YOU CAN GO ONTO WWW.CAFEGIVE.COM
And search through products. It is almsot like a huge online department store.
WHY?

Because ANYTHING you need can be bought there!!
Apparel, lugguage, books, music, electronics, flowers, food, GIFTS, baby stuff, green shopping, office, home, travel, pet supplies, jewelry/accessories, shoes, healthy/beauty!!

TRY IT OUT!

Go to CAFE GIVE and Click on SHOP! Then do some browsing!!

BUT FIRST!

Make sure that in the upper right corner of your screen you are “EARNING FOR ORANGUTAN FOUNDATION INTERNATIONAL”

Here is the main OFI CAFE GIVE page if you want to see us on the CAFE site!
http://cafegive.com/causes/orangutan-foundation-international

Here you can also see view of the current OFI advocates.

GUESS WHAT??
Here’s What!!

I’m already one of them! Look for Sarah!

Here I am!
http://cafegive.com/users/emmababy17

OK, now check out my WIDGETS!

What the H-E- DOUBLE HOCKEY STICKS is a WIDGET!!

It’s a little box that you can post ANYWHERE! Like a mobile website. For Example my Steve Madden Widget is on my FACEBOOK page! This means my friends could click on the Steve Madden Widget, buy some GORGEOUS pumps (oooo shoes!) and 4.8% of the purchase will go to OFI!
Each store/brand featured on Cafe Give (like Steve Madden) has a different percentage that will be earned so look at the amounts getting earned through purchases.

As you can see I have 5 widgets already!
iTunes!
Borders!
Flowers!

So this is super fun and something that will be GREAT during the holiday season!

JUST SHOP CAFE GIVE and EARN for OFI

OR!
Get started on your own
Post your own widgets to your own websites.
Make sure the widgets are earning for the cause you care about!
Let your friends and family know to do their online shopping through your widget or through CAFE GIVE and help the cause!

FUN STUFF!!"

To see the original post, check out: OFI Today.

Involved in OFI?  Leave a comment below and let us know!

Ready for the Holidays CafeGive Style

It’s that time of year again! Trick-or-treaters have come and gone. Leaves have changed and sidewalks are covered with piles of crisp leaves (unless you’re local then they’re soggy from Portland rain). College students and out of town family are planning trips home for the holidays.

Let CafeGive help you get ready. We’ve created a special category to make it easy to find everything you need to enjoy the holidays with family and friends. Here is a Ready for the Holidays Check List, CafeGive style:

· Party Planning:

o Tiny Prints – for invitations and holiday cards

o Cooking Enthusiast – for first time preparers to the pros

o Burkedecor – for home decorations

o Flora2000.com – fresh flowers add a festive touch to any occasion at home or the office

· Holiday Spirit:

o Borders – books and gifts make the best presents

o Apple iTunes – get in the spirit with some new music downloads

o Chronicle Books – great conversation starters: coffee table books!

· Ready for Winter:

o Home Depot – to winterize your home

o Snowshack – your ski, snowboard, snowsports equipment stop

o Green Garden Tools – prep your garden now for spring

o Clean Air 4 Life – with all the dry air, you might want a new humidifier

· Travel and Entertainment:

o Westin Hotel – for those traveling during the holidays

o Bedandbreakfast.com – in need of a little holiday getaway?

o Ticket Network – a great stocking stuffer

o Southwest Vacations – plan a winter ski holiday or a visit to family

Interested in learning more about CafeGive? Check out our website, Facebook Fan page, blog and Twitter.

Purchasing something on CafeGive or have another Ready for the Holidays suggestion? Let us know below!

CafeGive on Charming Life Design Jewery's Blog

Below is a blog post about CafeGive that was posted on Charming Life Design Jewerly's Blog:

CafeGive and Charming Life Partner to Raise Funds

I recently had the opportunity to meet with Sandra Morris, a Founder and CEO of CafeGive. Based in Portland, Oregon, Sandra and her talented team have launched an impressive website that helps individuals and communities raise money for non-profit agencies (they call them “Causes”). The idea is simple: You sign up as a member shopper of CafeGive , select the Cause of your choice, and then shop at any of the hundreds of on-line stores they partner with. The Cause and the Advocates then earn funds through CafeGive.

I’m happy to announce Charming Life has just joined the ranks of the CafeGive merchant partners, which include the likes of Banana Republic, The Westin Hotels, The Walking Store, Macy’s, PetSmart , etc, etc. The most exciting part about becoming a member of the CafeGive community is that EVERYONE gets to earn money for their favorite Causes. As a merchant partner, Charming Life Designs is committed to giving a percentage of every Charming Life Designs sale initiated from CafeGive to member non-profits. As a consumer, you get to buy the products you need (or want) AND a portion of those sales goes back to your favorite Cause.

CafeGive’s concept is simple, yet brilliant. Not only can you shop via the CafeGive website, you can actually become an advocate for your Cause and send little links (they call them “Widgets”) to all of your friends via email or twitter, or post them on your facebook page. When your friends make a purchase via your Widget, they are also contributing to your Cause.

In these tough economic times, it is refreshing to run across a business that bolsters the fundraising efforts of non-profits simply by connecting people, their products, and their causes. For more information about becoming a member shopper or a member Cause visit CafeGive’s website.

Thanks for writing about us Charming Life! Have you written a blog post about CafeGive? Let us know so we can add you to our new blog roll!

Do Your Holiday Shopping and Support MountainStar

Here is an awesome article about CafeGive:

It's a fun way to help out your favorite charity. by Julia Gray

MountainStar Family Relief Nursery is helping you with your holiday shopping. Tim Rusk, with MountainStar says they have a new on-line feature that can link you to wonderful shopping opportunities. It's called "Cafe Give". Rusk says: What we've got is a website you can go to, and that is www.cafegive.com and it's a website that matches charities with some great vendors and creates a commission that gets donated to the charity. So there's no additional charge to doing this, but a commission gets generated.  Rusk said they are the only program in Deschutes County that provides therapeutic programs, parenting services and family support targeted at protecting babies and toddlers at significant risk for child abuse and neglect. Logging on to "cafe give" is one way that you can do your holiday shopping while helping out MountainStar. You can find a link to Mountain star on the Links page here.