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WASHINGTON D.C. (March 21, 2008) - In 2006, a Five for Fighting
hit single asked fans what kind of world they wanted, and now they
have a forum to answer the question and help five charities at the
same time.
"Whatkindofworlddoyouwant.com is a 'You Tube' for charity, where
people can upload videos related to any subject they would like,
and then pick a charity from the list I've selected," said John
Ondrasik of Five for Fighting, who created the site about a year
ago.
The charities include Operation Homefront and Fisher House,
which support the troops, as well as Augie's Quest, Autism Speaks
and Save the Children.
"I pick the ones I see doing good work or that I have some
connection with," he added. "We get sponsors to donate money up
front, and whenever somebody watches a video, money is raised for
the chosen charity, up to a sponsored amount."
Some of the donations come from big corporations, but there are
contributions from individual donors as well. Those are the ones
that Ondrasik said he's excited to see, because he feels that's
where the site will really begin to grow.
"It's just been exciting to see how people come together and
express themselves," Ondrasik added. "Some of the videos are
fantastic. Some are home videos (and) some are more produced than
others."
The latter would describe the video TriWest Health Alliance
created to go with Five for Fighting's "Freedom Never Cries."
Ondrasik describes it as a "full-fledged music video."
The singer met TriWest's chief executive officer, David
McIntyre, while working with the organization on his "CD for the
Troops" project late last year. The project compiled the music of
about a dozen well-known musicians and made it available, at no
cost, to all servicemembers.
From that interaction grew a closer relationship, and the video
for "Freedom Never Cries." TriWest debuted the video at the gala
for the Medal of Honor recipients at the Ronald Reagan Foundation
and Presidential Library as Ondrasik sang the song live.
"It's how we opened the evening," Ondrasik said. "(Then) I
thought, 'Hey, since we have this already, why don't we pick a new
charity and put it up on whatkindofworlddoyouwant.com?'"
In the nearly three weeks the TriWest/Five for Fighting
combination has been on the Web site, it's gotten about 7,500 hits,
Ondrasik said.
"I'm already overwhelmed by the incredibly positive response in
people clicking through the videos and then absolutely raving about
it," said Meredith Leyva, founder of Operation Homefront. "It
really is a powerful video. I have no doubt that we will blow the
page views out of the water."
Adding to the positive impact it will have on Operation
Homefront, TriWest has agreed to match $1 for every view up to
$30,000. Leyva said the "Freedom Never Cries" video is an important
reminder to the American public.
"It's speaking to how everyday Americans have just sort of gone
on with their lives, and remembering that we really are at war,"
she said. "John (Ondrasik) has truly gone above and beyond the call
of duty in raising Americans' awareness that we really are at war
and need to support the troops."
Jim Weiskopf, Fisher House's executive vice president for
communications, agrees that Ondrasik's support is fantastic and
just what organizations like his need.
"We think it's absolutely wonderful," he said. "What is so
amazingly difficult for me to comprehend, having served in Vietnam
40-plus years ago, is that the American public loves its men and
women in uniform and does everything it can to help them and to
honor their service."
The benefit to Fisher House, which has been one of the charities
benefitting from whatkindofworlddoyouwant.com for about a year, is
two-fold, Weiskopf said.
"It generates donations to us, and like it or not, the only way
we can do what we do is with the public's support," he said, adding
that it also helps to increase awareness of the organization.
"We're just extremely appreciative of all efforts."
Weiskopf said support like his group receives from
whatkindofworlddoyouwant.com is more than just a tangible boost for
the men and women Fisher House Foundation serves.
"They deserve our thanks and praise, and when people like John
(Ondrasik) honor them, it's absolutely wonderful," he said.
Operation Homefront and Fisher House Foundation are supporters
of America Supports You, a Defense Department program connecting
citizens and companies with servicemembers and their families
serving at home and abroad. TriWest Health Care Alliance is a
corporate supporter of the program.
Editor's Note: To find out about more individuals,
groups and organizations that are helping support the troops,
visit www.AmericaSupportsYou.mil. America
Supports You directly connects military members to the support of
the America people and offers a tool to the general public in their
quest to find meaningful ways to support the military
community.
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