Do you want to make a difference in somebody's life this festive season, but don't know where to start? Donate an Hour was launched in late October 2009 by husband and wife team Joey and Christine da Silva. The central idea was to create and manage a non-profit campaign that would raise funds for a specific cause each year.
Donate an Hour challenges both individuals and companies to donate one billable hour's equivalent to the cause at hand. In 2009/2010, the Donate an Hour campaign will focus on Huis Luckhoff, a home for the aged located in Rosebank, Cape Town. The home provides frail care and full-time nursing facilities to its residents. Even though the home is partly subsidised by the Department of Social Services, there are severe deficits and shortages.
Both Christine and Joey bring extensive online experience to the table, and have pooled their knowledge and skills into setting up a website and online marketing campaign for the Donate an Hour initiative.
"We wanted to do something for a cause close to our hearts," explains Christine, "and we decided that the easiest way to effect serious change would be through collaboration - which of course fits in very nicely with the central premises surrounding social media and web 2.0. We are both ‘web people' and realised that by using online channels and existing structures, we could try to reach as many people as possible."
"Through the Donate an Hour campaign, we hope to raise R500,000 to cover the home's debt," says Joey. "Ideally 10% of that by December 2009. All funds raised will go towards servicing Huis Luckoff's debt so that they don't have to further lay-off valuable nursing staff and can attend to desperate building maintenance."
Individuals and companies who contribute will be credited on both the Huis Luckhoff and Donate an Hour websites. There will also be full disclosure, on both websites, as to how much money has been received and where the funds are being spent.
Anybody who would like to contribute is encouraged to visit the Donate an Hour site (donate-an-hour.org)
