More Than Half of Companies Increased Philanthropy in 2008, Despite Economic Decline

Christina Gold, Western Union President and Chief Executive Officer, said, "Corporate citizenship is about shared values; it allows us to build the strength of our business while strengthening communities. As a leader in global money transfer services, Western Union stands for economic opportunity, and we build on that core commitment by promoting education and entrepreneurship across our 379,000 agent locations in 200 countries and territories. It is a model that CECP champions and we applaud them."

Liquidnet Holdings, Inc. receives the Small Company Award, presented annually to a company with revenues less than $3 billion. Liquidnet allocates one percent of revenues each year to address global challenges. A global firm trading in 29 equity markets across five continents, Liquidnet focuses its philanthropic efforts on supporting unique solutions to global challenges. The company helped develop the Agahozo-Shalom Youth Village in Rwanda, which provides facilities to care for and educate more than 500 children left orphaned by the Rwandan genocide. Since the inception of the Village in 2006, Liquidnet has donated $6 million to the project. Employees have raised an additional $150,000 for the program, and more than 75% of Liquidnet’s worldwide workforce has participated in or contributed to the project. Liquidnet’s goal is to create a community that will thrive and become the blueprint for success for other projects in Rwanda, and across the developing world.

Seth Merrin, Founder and CEO, Liquidnet, says, “The Rwandan Genocide represents the failure to act. This Village represents what happens when people around the world come together to provide a future of promise and optimism for orphaned Rwandan youth. Liquidnet has built a new model that redefines the responsibilities of corporate America to include both creating value in the marketplace, and making a significant social impact in the broader community.”

Boys & Girls Clubs of America receives the CECP Directors’ Nonprofit Award for a successful collaboration with its nominating corporate partner Charles Schwab Foundation. Together, they created a financial literacy program just for teens, primarily from underserved communities, entitled Money Matters: Make It CountSM. This initiative combines Schwab’s financial resources with BGCA’s expertise in youth advancement, resulting in the collaborative development of a teen guide, a facilitator’s guide, an interactive Web site, a scholarship and awards program, and an employee volunteer program. Money Matters teaches teens essential lessons about spending wisely, banking basics, credit, saving, investing, paying for college, and entrepreneurship, and has already reached well over 100,000 Club teens throughout the U.S. Charles Schwab Foundation has awarded $260,000 in college scholarships to 127 Boys & Girls Club teens who demonstrated exceptional abilities in their newly acquired knowledge of personal finance.