Schock, Bustos co-sponsor #GivingTuesday resolution in U.S. House

 

The Peoria region’s two congressmen were co-sponsors on a bi-partisan resolution that would give special recognition to #GivingTuesday, the Tuesday after Thanksgiving dedicated to charitable giving and volunteerism.

U.S. Reps. Aaron Schock, R-Peoria, and Cheri Bustos, D-East Moline, co-sponsored the resolution introduced in the U.S. House on Thursday. This is the third year for #GivingTuesday, which follows the already establish holiday events of Black Friday, Small Business Saturday and Cyber Monday. The resolution recognizes that philanthropy and charitable giving knows no party divide, as giving has the ability to transcend any differences of political ideologies and has the power to unite people across boundaries. 

“According to the 2014 Millennial Impact Report, 73 percent of millennials gave to charity in 2013,” said Schock. “Generosity and philanthropy are important to our generation, and we are rising to do our part as previous generations have done. For some, it’s through financial support of a favorite charity, church, or synagogue. For others, it’s through acts of service in their communities, or even through our nation’s most important form of volunteer service in the United States Armed Forces. Whatever the avenue they choose, millennial are wholeheartedly following the great American tradition of giving back and paying it forward.”

“All too often, people focus on what divides us rather than what unites us. But throughout the year, and especially during the holiday season, we can all work toward a shared goal by giving back to others and making a positive change within our own communities,” said Bustos. “That’s why this holiday season I am joining with Democrats and Republicans to recognize ‘Giving Tuesday,’ a day dedicated to volunteering and giving back to those less fortunate than we are. I encourage everyone to get involved in service not only this holiday season, but year round.”

Now in its third year, #GivingTuesday is a worldwide movement with more than 16,000 U.S.-based partners that celebrates the power of giving in all its forms. Launched by the 92^nd Street Y and the United Nations Foundation in 2012, this worldwide movement harnesses the power of social media and the generosity of people around the world to bring about real change in their communities and celebrates the power of giving in all its forms.

This resolution was co-sponsored by Reps. Rodney Davis (R-IL), Todd Young (R-IN), Juan Vargas (D-CA) and Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI-2).

For more information, including background, partner information, tools, and updates, please visit www.givingtuesday.org.

According to #GivingTuesday, this effort builds on the collective power of a unique blend of partners — charities, families, businesses and individuals — to transform how people think about, talk about and participate in the giving season.

“#GivingTuesday inspires people to take collaborative action to improve their local communities, give back in better, smarter ways to the charities and causes they celebrate and help create a better world,” it said.

Founding partners who started #GivingTuesday include include Blackbaud, CECP, charity: water, GlobalGiving, Groupon, Kiva, Microsoft, Pvblic Foundation, (RED), Unilever, United Nations Development Programme and Univision among many others. The movement includes signature media partner MSNBC, who will help spotlight the innovative ways that people are giving back in their communities and the world.