23 November, 2006
Awesome foursome for
Australian charities
Four of Australia’s biggest charities, Australian
Red Cross, Mission Australia, Heart Foundation and The
Cancer Council Australia have joined forces for the first time in Australia’s
history. They are pooling their energy and resources to communicate
to the public about an issue which is common to them all - the
importance of updating your Will and including a bequest to charity.
The campaign was created after the charities each shared their
own statistics which showed unanimously that many people still
do not understand how to leave a bequest, or how important they
are to not-for-profit organisations. Currently, only 8% of Australians
leave a bequest to charity in their Will.
“Collaborating on a social change campaign of this importance
has proven to be very powerful,” says Mr Martin Paul, spokesperson
for Include a Charity. By putting together the knowledge from
across Australia’s best known charities, pooling our information
and sharing the skills of our best people, we’ve managed
to create a first.”
“The work that charities do is becoming increasingly dependent
on bequests or gifts in Wills,” says Martin Paul. “Including
a bequest to a charity in your Will is relatively easy to implement.
Without such donations charities would not be able to help so
many people through some of the most difficult periods of their
lives.”
The jointly funded and created campaign will be released nationally
from 27th November 2006, with all four charities hoping that
it will raise awareness amongst Australians about an easy and
simple form of giving which will protect the future.
“We analysed best practice here and overseas. Creating
a joint venture on behalf of a whole industry enables us to deliver
a consistent message and save money. All four charities have
extremely strong brands, highly trusted by seniors and the general
public. Our research, feedback from supporters and subsequent
business case shows that together we may be able to institute
social change far more effectively than each charity could individually,” says
Martin Paul, spokesperson for Include a Charity.
“This campaign is about informing the public that anyone
can include a charity in their Will - and it should be the charity
of your choice. We are providing information about how easy it
is to do, information about charitable giving in Australia as
well as giving answers to many frequently asked questions. Anyone
can make a bequest, they are not the exclusive domain of the
wealthy and come from all corners of the community,” adds
Mr Paul.
Top
See next
See previous
|
