Kentucky (June 19, 2012) - In today’s economy, every dollar counts for non-profit agencies. A chance to leverage social media for a $25,000 grant was an opportunity worth pursuing for the Bluegrass Rape Crisis Center; one of 40 organizations chosen to “Cause an Effect” in its community.
The program was a new concept created by State Farm Insurance in an effort to provide funding for worthy projects around the country. It received 3,000 grant application submissions which were narrowed to 100 finalists by the State Farm Youth Advisory Board, a diverse group of 30 students. Forty of those 100 finalists, selected by Facebook voters, received $25,000 grants. Thanks to an outpouring of community support, the Bluegrass Rape Crisis Center was one of the grant winners.
People were asked to go to the “Cause an Effect” page on Facebook and vote for their favorite causes. Once Bluegrass found out it was among the 100 winners, the Rape Crisis Center got to work encouraging supporters to vote as well as educating the public about available services and sexual violence awareness.
“This program has been beneficial to us in more than just financial terms,” explained Stephanie Humes, interim director. “We have been able to explain our mission and talk about what we do. It’s been very educational.”
Thousands supported the Center by posting information about the contest on their personal Facebook and Twitter pages and encouraging others to vote. Votes were logged from across the country and around the world, including Japan and England. More than 18,000 votes later, the organization had reached its goal, finishing 24th out of the top 40 causes.
The money will be used to further the programs of the Center which serves 17 counties with offices in Lexington, Nicholasville, Richmond, Georgetown, Winchester, Frankfort, Danville and Cynthiana. The complete list of Top 40 winners and more information about Cause an Effect, can be found on the State Farm Facebook Page, http://www.facebook.com/statefarm.
Contact
Kip Diggs, Enterprise Public Affairs Serving Kentucky and Tennessee (615) 692-6682
State Farm and its affiliates are the largest provider of car insurance in the U.S. and is a leading insurer in Canada. In addition to providing auto insurance quotes, their 17,800 agents and more than 65,000 employees serve 81 million policies and accounts - more than 79 million auto, home, life and health policies in the United States and Canada, and nearly 2 million bank accounts. Commercial auto insurance, along with coverage for renters, business owners, boats and motorcycles, is also available. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company is the parent of the State Farm family of companies. State Farm is ranked No. 43 on the Fortune 500 list of largest companies. For more information, please visit http://www.statefarm.com or in Canada http://www.statefarm.ca.
