Nonprofit fundraising ideas for charity & community awareness in Gibraltar

FUTURE LEADERS IN PHILANTHROPY PROJECT NEW LAUNCH DATE SET

[Gibraltar, 30 October 2009] Credit Suisse (Gibraltar) Limited and The Bonita Trust of Gibraltar are proud to announce the launch for the second intake of their jointly funded nonprofit fundraising and community awareness project “Future Leaders in Philanthropy” (FLIP) on 18th November 2009 at Westside School, open to all Year 12 students who have attained at least 5 A’s at GCSE level.
Aimed at local students aged sixteen and over, FLIP is a 3-year project which has been established to raise community awareness and understanding of social responsibility amongst this age group in Gibraltar. The project seeks to educate teenagers about the value and societal benefits of philanthropic gift-giving, as well as teaching them how to manage their own charitable funds.

Highlights of this community awareness project include management of a Euro 5 million virtual philanthropic investment portfolio and a charity fundraising project, through which the participants gain a real insight into charities and the way they work.
The FLIP students are required to undertake various assignments of a charitable and financial nature over the course of 3 years, for which they will receive financial rewards and gifts. Participants are also able to select a charity of their choice to receive donations and for whom they will complete a fundraising project.

FLIP was first launched in January this year with 20 students, and so far the following local charities have benefited financially from the project: The Gibraltar Society for Cancer Relief; The Calpe House Charitable Trust; The Gibraltar Disability Society; St John’s Ambulance; The Multiple Sclerosis Therapy Centre; Research into Childhood Cancer; A Pathway through Pain; Gibraltar Branch of Cancer Research UK; The Down’s Syndrome Support Group Gibraltar; The Gibraltar Community Association; The Gibraltar Society for the Visually Impaired; The Gibraltar Dyslexia Support Group; and Childline Gibraltar.

The current FLIP students were required to research their chosen charities, comparing and contrasting them to a similar international charity, and have submitted a detailed essay on their findings, suggesting areas for improvement.
The students are also learning about the financial markets and are running their own virtual financial portfolios, guided by their Credit Suisse mentors. These are all doing remarkably well!

Speaking on behalf of The Bonita Trust, founding member of the International Advisory Board member,
Ruth Parasol-DeLeon commented “Since 2004, the Bonita Trust has supported numerous charitable projects in Gibraltar, aimed at many different groups within our society. As well as providing a challenge for our high academic achievers in schools, the FLIP project allows the students to acquire a sense of their social responsibility. We are delighted with the results as the students have come up with some very inventive nonprofit fundraising ideas for charities”

Trino Cruz from Credit Suisse remarked, “As part of our pledge to corporate citizenship, Credit Suisse is proud of its partnership with The Bonita Trust which has ensured such a successful start for FLIP. The excellent response and high level of involvement of all students and the invaluable support received from all involved, has made FLIP an exceptional community awareness initiative so well tailored to Gibraltar itself.”
FLIP is supported by the Department of Education and Training and all current year 12 students from any Gibraltar-based school / college, who have achieved at least 5 A’s at GCSE are invited to attend the launch and apply for the opportunity to take part in the FLIP project’s second intake. Twenty applicants will once again be selected to participate in the scheme.

Headteachers and the Director of Education, speaking after discussions with the Gibraltar Ministry for Education, said this is an exciting project for their pupils, and participation in it would not only help them personally, but would also enhance their future university and career applications.

The students are currently engaged in planning individual charity fundraising events and The Bonita Trust and Credit Suisse hope that the public will support their efforts to raise as much money as possible. All funds raised by the students will be matched by The Bonita Trust, resulting in twice as much money for local charities.

The FLIP project is managed by Ms Ros Astengo who can be contacted at info@flip.gi for any queries.

For further information, visit www.flip.gi

Notes to Editors

The Bonita Trust: www.bonitatrust.org

The Bonita Trust is a philanthropic trust established under Gibraltar Law in 2004 by a subsidiary of PartyGaming plc, prior to its London Stock Exchange flotation in 2005. The philanthropic foundation is served by an International Advisory Board whose first member was Ruth Parasol DeLeon.

Bonita has focused the majority of its community grant-making in the United Kingdom, India, Israel and Gibraltar and has, since inception, donated over £7.5 million pounds to charities delivering programmes in the areas of education, health and entrepreneurship, working in partnership with communities worldwide.

Bonita also provides technological expertise in order to help charities promote themselves on the internet and increase their reach and therefore their delivery of support.

For further information please contact moe.cohen@bonitatrust.org