As the holiday season approaches, so too does the most generous time of year. On November 28, generous and socially minded companies and individuals the world over participated in #GivingTuesday, a global day of giving. And to help everyone give just a little more, T-Mobile, set aside $2 million to be donated to nonprofits selected by its users. But while the giving day has come and gone, T-Mobile is continuing in the spirit of generosity, and is now encouraging folks to recycle their old phones and tablets at local T-Mobile stores, where all donations will be matched.
From December 1 to the end of the year, folks who recycle phones or tablets will have their impact doubled, as the Un-carrier promises to match the recycled value of donated devices, and send the proceeds to Feeding America and Team Rubicon.
The Bellevue, Washington-based carrier is pledging a minimum matching donation of $1,000,000 to be split equally between the two charities, said to be enough to buy five million meals and deploy 5,000 veterans to serve in disaster-afflicted areas.
This initiative builds off of #GivingTuesday 2017, when T-Mobile leveraged its perennially popular T-Mobile Tuesdays app to give customers $2 not to spend at Dunkin Donuts, Panda Express, or one of the other retailers often found on the platform, but rather to donate. Folks with the T-Mobile Tuesdays app were able to give that money to one of four charities — the American Red Cross, Boys & Girls Club of America, Feeding America, or Team Rubicon.
T-Mobile’s offer wasn’t limited to T-Mobile customers. In fact, anytime anyone tweeted #GivingTWOgether on November 28, the Bellevue, Washington-based carrier pledged to donate yet another $2 to be split evenly among each of the four charities, up to $100,000. And those part of the T-Mobile payroll found an extra $28 in their Giving Accounts on the morning of November 28 that could be donated to any charity.
“This has been a tough year for so many, and on this #GivingTuesday, you get to give back the way that matters most to you,” said John Legere, president and CEO of T-Mobile.
So what did your $2 donation do? If you selected the Boys & Girls Club of America, your generosity will help provide 40 minutes of homework support to after-school youth. Meanwhile, $2 given to the American Red Cross will result in a comfort kit to someone impacted by a disaster, whereas a donation to Feeding America promises to allow food to be distributed to a family in need. And finally, Team Rubicon will use the donations that it receives to give clean water filtration kits to families affected by a natural disaster.
Update: T-Mobile promises to match the value of donated phones and tablets to benefit Feeding America and Team Rubicon.
