Tuesday, December 02, 2008 — With 18,582 supporting votes, the American Red Cross placed first among eight non-profit organizations in the Western Union Foundation’s Our World Gives campaign. Based on this endorsement, the Western Union Foundation will award the American Red Cross $50,000 in support of its life-saving mission. “We are honored to have been selected by Facebook members as their favorite charity,” said Jeff Towers, Chief Development Officer for the American Red Cross.  “Our sincere thanks to the Western Union Foundation and the many Facebook members who voted and mobilized their network of friends in support of the American Red Cross.  As we continue our current campaign to raise $100 million for disaster relief, we are encouraged by this endorsement of our mission.”

The Western Union Foundation partnered with the Facebook social networking site to create the Our World Gives campaign to raise awareness of the incredible work done by the participating charities in addressing critical social issues.  Our World Gives is part of Western Union's Our World, Our Family program - a five-year, $50 million commitment to facilitate global economic opportunity and help migrants and their families stay connected, overcome barriers and realize their dreams. Our World, Our Family is designed to reach people on every rung of the economic ladder.

Other participating non-profit organizations include: Accion USA, CARE, Mercy Corps, Room to Read, US Fund for UNICEF, Opportunity International and World Vision. For more information, please visit westernunion.com/foundation

About the American Red Cross:
All American Red Cross disaster assistance is free, made possible by voluntary donations of time and money from the American people. You can help the victims of thousands of disasters across the country each year, disasters like the California wildfires, by making a financial gift to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund, which enables the Red Cross to provide shelter, food, counseling and other assistance to victims of disaster. The American Red Cross honors donor intent. If you wish to designate your donation to a specific disaster please do so at the time of your donation. Call 1-800-REDCROSS (1-800-733-2767) or 1-800-257-7575 (Spanish). Contributions to the Disaster Relief Fund may be sent to your local American Red Cross chapter or to the American Red Cross, P. O. Box 37243, Washington, DC20013. Internet users can make a secure online contribution by visiting www.redcross.org.