CBS EcoMedia has announced that The Humane Society of the United States has won the $250,000 grand prize in the inaugural Charity Champions League “social giving” competition.
Christina Grimmie, the 22-year-old singer who died tragically on June 11, served as the organization’s Team Captain.
In addition to Ms. Grimmie, 10 celebrities from sports, entertainment and digital media led teams in support of a variety of nonprofit organizations.
These are the final standings:
(1st) $250,000 – Christina Grimmie/The Humane Society of the United States
(2nd) $100,000 – Nancy O'Dell/ALS.net
(3rd) $75,000 – Kevin Frazier/School on Wheels
(4th) $50,000 – Cal Ripken, Jr/Cal Ripken Sr. Foundation
(5th) $25,000 – Phil Keoghan/National Multiple Sclerosis Society
(6th) $15,000 – Weylie Hoang/ASPCA
(7th) $10,000 – Usain Bolt/After-School All-Stars
(8th) $10,000 – Mark Teixeira/Harlem RBI
(9th) $5,000 – Jerod Mayo/Boston Medical Center
(10th) $5,000 – Nika Erculj/The Trevor Project
(11th) $5,000 – Stephanie May & Matilda Donovan/Ronald McDonald House Charities
“Christina Grimmie and all our Team Captains proved that when you present the American public with an easy way to get involved and make a difference, they will take action,” said Paul Polizzotto, Founder and President of CBS EcoMedia. “We are delighted to be able to direct critical funding to The Humane Society of the United States, which Christina was so dedicated to supporting, and to the other 10 very worthy nonprofit organizations that participated in the competition.”
The goal of Charity Champions League is to give millions of Americans the opportunity to support the social causes that most inspire them — without making a personal monetary donation.
The competition was free to play, and participants scored “points” for the nonprofit team of their choice by reading, watching and sharing content on the Charity Champions League website and recruiting others to play.
The $550,000 prize pool was provided through generous contributions from Local Toyota Dealers, ServiceMaster, Tri-State Chevy Dealers, Winthrop University Hospital and Jerome’s Furniture.
“We are still grieving over the senseless killing of Christina, but we are committed to honoring her passion for animals by creating the Christina Grimmie Animal Medical Fund to provide lifesaving veterinary attention and ongoing care for our most critical animal rescue cases,” said Wayne Pacelle, President and CEO of The Humane Society of the United States. “Her many fans made sure that she placed first in the Charity Champions competition, enabling a gift of $250,000. We hope that the Grimmie family and her worldwide fans take some solace in knowing that her compassion for animals and people will live on through this lifesaving program.”
Augie Nieto, Chairman of the Board, ALS.net, added, “All of us at ALS.net are so thankful to Nancy O’Dell and everyone at Charity Champions League for creating a fun, inspiring way to raise crucial dollars for ALS Research. We appreciate everyone who took the time to participate. Every dollar we receive will be put to use immediately in our research lab to find a cure for ALS.”
Catherine Meek, Executive Director, School on Wheels, commented, “What an honor! Thank you, Charity Champions League, and our team captain, Kevin Frazier, and all of those wonderful people who played in the league. Homelessness has a devastating impact on children’s educational opportunities, and this award will enable us to provide volunteer tutors to hundreds of homeless kids for an entire year. This will truly change their lives.”
Charity Champions League is the latest program from EcoMedia, whose mission is to transform the power of the advertising dollar into tangible social change. The company’s unique business model gives brands the opportunity to direct a portion of their advertising budgets to participating nonprofits, helping to fund a variety of critical environmental, health and wellness, education and veterans’ programs without adding to their advertising spend. Since its inception in 2001, EcoMedia has directed over $80 million in funding and resources to a variety of philanthropic organizations, positively impacting the lives of more than 30 million Americans.
