Manitoba companies helping to kick-start donations from millennials

Tuesday, November 28, 2017

Winnipeg, MB, November 28, 2017 – A new Canadian startup company seeking to change the way people donate is launching an innovative application with support from Manitoba organizations.

Givesome is an app-based platform designed to appeal to millennials. It allows users to donate $2, $5, or $10 to projects of their choice, all from the convenience of their smartphone. Once the project is completed, donors receive a video that showcases the positive impact of the funds they gave, including who they helped.

Several Manitoba charities are already benefiting from this platform as charity partners, including CanU Canada, The Robb Nash Project and Inner City Youth Alive.

What sets Givesome apart from other organizations is that there are zero administration or hidden fees. All funds raised for a project go to that project. To achieve this, Givesome sought out corporate partners – and Manitoba corporations answered their call.

Great-West Life was the first Manitoba company to invest in Givesome’s mission to change giving, and Payworks, EQ3, and The Winnipeg Foundation soon followed.

“Our companies are strong supporters of charitable giving, and Givesome’s innovative efforts to develop a new way to use technology to encourage people to donate is exactly the type of initiative we’re proud to be involved in,” said Stefan Kristjanson, President and COO, Great-West Life, London Life, and Canada Life. “It’s great to see they’ve created a way to reach a new demographic of givers, and that other organizations in Manitoba agree and also want to offer support.”

In addition to the app that’s available for anyone to download, Givesome has launched a new “Givecard” program that can be used within companies as an employee engagement tool. It provides staff with the opportunity to choose which charities and projects they want to support.

“We’ve been blown away by the generosity of the people and companies in Manitoba,” said Jay Whitelaw, Givesome founder. “In 2002 I spent a year in Namibia, Africa, as a teacher. I became close friends with a man named Kamati and for the first time in my life I got to see with my own eyes the difference that simple giving can can do for a person, a family and a community. I started Givesome because I wanted other people to be able to SEE the life changing impact that giving can have.”

About Givesome

Givesome is a not-for-profit created to show people the difference they make when they give. We highlight local and global charitable projects on our app and provide users the opportunity to fund those projects for $2, $5 or $10. We keep 0% of the funding and the best part is that once a project is completed we send real video footage (provided by our charity partners) back to everyone who supported that project. 

About Great-West Life 

Great-West Life, together with London Life and Canada Life, offers a broad portfolio of financial and benefit plan solutions, and serves the financial security needs of more than 13 million people across Canada. Responsible and ethical management is an intrinsic value of the companies and is essential to long-term profitability and value creation. As an Imagine Caring Company supporting the principles of corporate citizenship and benchmarks for community investment established by Imagine Canada, the companies donate a minimum of one per cent of average pre-tax profits to non-profit, charitable and community organizations each year.