The year is coming to an end and this time, the decade is, too. Time to take a moment, look back, and reflect how far we’ve come. In 2003, PM-International teamed up with the relief, development, and advocacy organization World Vision. The objective of our corporate philanthropy PM We Care was clear back then and it is clear today: Giving back and helping children in need to create a better tomorrow.
16 years later, PM-International is the largest corporate sponsor worldwide of World Vision. And thanks to the dedication and support of our customers and Team Partners, we have reached our goals and broken yet another record. At our annual Christmas Gala during the Leadership Weekend in Alpbach, Austria, PM Charity Ambassador Vicki Sorg announced the highest-ever annual donation in the history of PM We Care: In 2020, we will support World Vision with 842.400 Euros and sponsor 500 additional children.
During the cheque handover, Vicki used the opportunity to say thank you. Not only to the 1,000 participating leaders in Alpbach, but to everyone out there contributing to PM We Care by using the FitLine products. Remember, every FitLine product sold gives children one “Hour of Life” and better opportunities for their future.
“Every child has the right to develop in the best possible way. And by doing what we love every single day, bringing the products and our business opportunity into the world, we can make a difference. Together with our partner World Vision, we can help children and their families to have a better future. This way, we make the world a better place, step by step. I am so happy and privileged to be a part of that, together with you, and I am thankful for every one of you contributing to PM We Care,” says Vicki.
What will the money be used for exactly?
The donations support 2,300 sponsored children, their families, and whole communities around the world. They help to provide health care and clean water to malnourished children in our Area Program in Bundi, India. They support World Vision’s WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) projects in Ghana, which will be a big topic for PM We Care in 2020. They promote small family businesses in Mongolia. They help to improve the education offered in primary schools in Indonesia, and so much more.
Empowering people to help themselves
On the Christmas Gala, Vicki announced yet another milestone: Starting in 2020, PM-International will sponsor a second Area Program and 500 children in Los Libertadores in the Peruvian Andes, focusing on education and supporting new income streams. These long-term regional development projects are running for approximately 15 years. They are planned and implemented together with locals, and 11,000 beneficiaries will benefit from the measures. Stay tuned, as we will share more about this project on the blog soon.
Outlook: 5,000 sponsored children until 2023
In the past 26 years, PM-International has donated 4.2 million Euros to charity. All of this wouldn’t be possible without the kindness and generous support of our customers and Team Partners. For this, we’d like to thank them from the bottom of our hearts. And we’ll continue to share our success. The more we grow, the more we can help. During the next three years, we want to increase the number of sponsored children to 5,000. This gives us the opportunity to change more than 700,000 lives for the better. Here’s to bringing even more smiles to the world!