Virgin has agreed to donate $1 million to homeless youth if Oudin wins the U.S. Open. The potential donation is part of Virgin Mobile's RE*Generation program, which raises awareness about the problem of homeless youth in the U.S.
Virgin Mobile USA will also provide free U.S. Open tickets to people who volunteer at not-for-profit homeless youth organizations.
LOL - that is the worst incentive ever. How is she supposed to win the US Open if the poor girl has never even won a tour level event. Talk about pressure. So if she never wins the US Open the homeless will never see that donation. Worst incentive based contract ever. What were they thinking?
ReplyDeleteIt's pretty tacky, isn't it?
ReplyDeleteAh! This is awesome! Thank you for dispelling many
ReplyDeletemisunderstandings I had seen about this lately.
Agree with Karen and Diane - Way to be charitable, Virgin Mobile!
ReplyDeleteHi Corinne with Virgin Mobile here...
ReplyDeleteThe $1M donation is one component of our relationship with Melanie and her involvement with our RE*Generation program. The Re*Generation initiative is designed to encourage young people to get involved in helping to raise awareness and volunteerism around the issue of youth homeless and Melanie is a great ambassador. We plan to have Melanie involved in various initiatives, including the Virgin Mobile FreeFest which directly benefits homeless youth.
Last year at Virgin Mobile Freefest, we launched our "FREE I.P." volunteer program. The initiative gives concert fans the chance to receive premium tickets in exchange for volunteer hours at local homeless youth organizations throughout the country. This past summer, the "FREE I.P." program at FreeFest generated more than 30,000 hours of community service by concert-goers. And while there is no direct donation should Melanie not win the U.S. Open, her impact on the issue will be measurable across the year.
Over the last three years since the inception of The Re*Generation, Virgin Mobile has contributed over $3 million dollars to raise awareness for the issue of youth homelessness. In 2007, with the help of formerly homeless singer-songwriter, Jewel, The RE*Generation lobbied Congress to make November the first ever National Homeless Youth Awareness Month. The RE*Generation is continuing to raise awareness about youth homelessness and providing people with ways to help kids living on the streets.
I can't speak for anyone else, but I certainly understand everything that is involved in Virgin Mobile's effort. That effort, however, is overshadowed by what I--and apparently others--consider an unfortunate public relations move.
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