Think before you donate!

GET THE FACTS ABOUT ONLINE RUMORS!

Goodwill provides job training and placement programs in your communities“Think before you donate” and we think you will see why donating to Goodwill® is the right choice. Goodwill is the leading workforce provider in the world, placing someone in a new job every 30 seconds of every business day. Goodwill has a more than 117-year track record in providing services to people going through transition, whether due to military service, lack of education or work experience, mental or physical challenges, or prior incarceration. There are 157 local 501(c)(3) Goodwill organizations in the U.S. and Canada, and a presence in 12 other countries. Goodwill is proud to be recognized by GuideStar with its Platinum Seal of Approval, the highest rating for nonprofit organizations. Goodwill retains the highest ranking by Charity Watch, formerly known as the American Institute of Philanthropy, which provides information about charities’ financial efficiency, accountability, governance and fundraising.

Because Goodwill is widely known as a retail entity, there is a lot of misinformation and misrepresentations about our brand. In particular, there is a rumor that has been circulating for over 15 years that insinuates we have an owner by the name of “Mark Curran.” As a nonprofit, Goodwill does not have an owner and no one by that name has ever been affiliated with the Goodwill network. Steven Preston is the president and CEO of Goodwill Industries International. Learn more about him.

We know that you want your donations to be used wisely, so here are the facts about Goodwill:

87 cents of every dollar you spend at your local Goodwill is reinvested in your community!• More than 87 percent of collective revenue from the sale of donated goods at Goodwill organizations support and grow their critical community-based programs and services, including job placement and training, credentials and certifications, and support services, such as child care, financial education, mentoring and transportation. This is well above the Better Business Bureau’s accountability standards, which require that an organization spend 65 percent of its total expenses on program services.

• Last year, more than 242,000 people in the U.S. and Canada connected with jobs or earned employment through career services offered by Goodwill organizations in North America. More than 1.6 million people engaged in face-to-face Goodwill services to build their career and financial assets, and advance in their careers. Additionally, more than 34 million people have accessed Goodwill’s mobile and online services, including virtual career fairs and mentoring.

• Goodwill operates 26 adult, charter high schools called Excel Centers, which prepare students with both a high school diploma and credentials as well as free childcare for adult learners. These graduates are showing significantly higher wages, many are going on to higher degrees, and even their children are demonstrating improved academic performance.

• The Goodwill Digital Career Accelerator®, a first of its kind partnership with Google.org to equip people with digital skills in a changing economy, has led to nearly 74,000 jobs in the first 18 months and enables participants to learn basic online skills to coding and cyber security skills.

• Through Goodwill organizations’ collaborations with employers and community colleges last year, we granted more than 38,000 credentials, providing people with skills targeted for employment.

See how Goodwill helped ChelseaFor more information and facts, and how we change lives like Chelsea’s, please click here.