made by Charles Lee on Jun 3, 2008

For the month of June, I would like to highlight a non-profit …

For the month of June, I would like to highlight a non-profit organization my friend, Jeff Shinabarger, helped to establish called Giftcardgiver.com that collects unused gift cards and then redistributes them to other charities that may be able to use them for their respective works.

The following are some stats about gift cards from their website:

* The holiday gift card industry has risen to be a 45 billion dollar industry this year alone according to TowerGroup, a research firm by MasterCard International.

* The National Retail Federation states that 81% of consumers received a gift card last year.

* As reported by www.post-gazette.com, American Eagle Outfitters had more than 25 million dollars in un-used gift card value in 2003.

* According to ACS Unclaimed-Property Clearninghouse Inc., roughly 10% of gift cards are NEVER redeemed (www.wsj.com).

The theory behind this is simple... How many unused gift cards do you have in your wallet? You could benefit some great organizations by sharing your unused cards!