>Operation HOPE Wants to Make Smart Cool With $250k from Pepsi!

>Always looking to support a worthy cause, a good organization, and a moving thought…today I received news that Operation HOPE is in the running to win $250,000 in the Pepsi Refresh Everything competition. So you know I voted immediately, posted on Twitter and Facebook, sent out emails to everyone I could think of, and now I’m blogging it! All we have to do is VOTE for Operation HOPE…it only takes 3 minutes and you can vote every day during the month of May…I will! I’m also posting the voting widget on my blog and website for the entire month of May.

Here’s an overview of Operation HOPE and 5MK copied from their Pepsi Refresh Voting page:

In America’s low income communities, the high school dropout rate can soar as high as 75%. The FIVE MILLION KIDS (5MK) Initiative seeks to change that. 5MK was started by Operation HOPE to reduce the number of students dropping out of our  schools. 

5MK will bring financial literacy to teens and their parents, guardians and teachers through Operation HOPE’s Banking on our Future (BOOF) and adult economic literacy education programs. By giving students practical lessons that teach “the language of money” and demonstrating the importance of school through celebrity involvement, community support and specially designed entrepreneurial opportunities, 5MK will empower teens to see the relevance of education to the pursuit of their dreams. 

Led by co-chairs Ambassador Andrew Young, a senior advisor to Dr. Martin Luther King, and music icon Quincy Jones, 5MK strives to inspire families and communities to get involved with the lives of our youth and Make Smart Cool.

Their goals are:

• Educate 160,000 low wealth youth and adults in financial literacy
• Recruit 2,000 volunteers to teach financial literacy across the U.S.
• Enlist grassroots leaders to help reverse high school dropout rates

How will the 250K be Used?
Budget Notes: Project costs include items such as salaries for staff members, printing BOOF curriculum, recruiting and training volunteers, and making continued upgrades to the Banking on Our Future.org online educational website.
$ 205,000	Project costs for BOOF and adult financial literacy programs
$ 45,000	Accounting, administration and other indirect costs

So what are you waiting on? Go vote!

http://www.refresheverything.com/widget/?i=07b313ba-6337-102d-919b-0019b9b9e205&w=300&mc=333333&mt=Hey%20folks%2C%20please%20vote%20for%20my%20friend%20Operation%20HOPE%2C%20Inc./FIVE%20MILLION%20KIDS%20Initiative%27s%20awesome%20idea%20to%20change%20America%21