Day 15: Go corporate

If you work for a corporation that would be interested in coupling its hurricane relief efforts with global recognition for its contribution, this is an outstanding opportunity. MTV is coming to St. Bernard, and there's still time for local and national companies to get involved.

Here's the deal: In honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day and Inauguration Day, the St. Bernard Project will hold a 24-hour build that will show the world the enduring need for help rebuilding homes even three years after Hurricane Katrina. MTV, as part of its inauguration coverage, will feature the final hour and a half of the build live on the air. It will be broadcast in 162 countries and 33 languages.

The sponsorship levels for the "Rebuild the Dream" event are as follows:

Title sponsor: $12,000 (Supports the complete rebuilding cost of one house)
-Your corporate logo and a link to your website on the front page of the St. Bernard Project website.
-Your name in the credits of the MTV inaugural show, shown internationally.
-A banner with your corporate logo and "welcome home" message to the family hung prominently in the home that will be featured on MTV.
-Recognition on the St. Bernard Project website as the sole house sponsor for the family whose home will be featured on MTV.

MLK Volunteer End-of-Day Dinner: $8,000 (Supports half of the rebuilding costs for a family whose home was devastated by Katrina and supports food for volunteer rebuilders)
-Your corporate logo and a link to your website on the front page of the St. Bernard Project Website.
-A banner with your logo displayed prominently at the dinner, which will be attended by volunteers from across America, and by local government, faith-based and civic leaders.
-Your name in the credits of the MTV inaugural show, shown internationally.

Shift Sponsor: $3,000 (4 six-hour shifts and 1 MLK day 8 hour shift available)
-Your corporate logo and a link to your website on the "Rebuild the Dream" page of the St. Bernard Project website.
-Your name in the credits of the MTV inaugural show, shown internationally.

Dream Builder (corporate): $1,000
-Your corporate logo and a link to your website on the "Rebuild the Dream" page of the St. Bernard Project website.

Dream Builder (individual): $100, $250, $500 or $1,000
-Your name, or the name of someone you wish to honor, listed on the "Rebuild the Dream" page of the St. Bernard Project website.

Below you will see the work schedule for "Rebuild the Dream." If you have any questions about the event, please don't hesitate to contact our development coordinator, Gretchen, at 504-723-6837.

Work Schedule

Monday, January 19, 2009 (Martin Luther King, Jr. Day)

8:30-4:30 Normal work hours celebrating the service of Martin Luther King, Jr.
5:30-7:30 Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Volunteer Dinner
10:00 p.m. - 4:00 a.m. First shift of "Rebuild the Dream"

Tuesday, January 20, 2009 (Inauguration Day)

4:00 a.m - 10:00 a.m. Second shift of "Rebuild the Dream"
10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. Third shift of "Rebuild the Dream"
4:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m. Final shift of "Rebuild the Dream"
9:00 p.m. - 10:30 p.m. Live Coverage on MTV

With your help, SBP can achieve two vital goals: We can honor past and future service to America and we can rebuild homes for hard-working, tax-paying American citizens.

Day 4: Use a charitable search engine

Helping your favorite organization is as easy as doing a web search. Just go to www.goodsearch.com. There you can pick from thousands of organizations or even add your personal favorite. The site is powered by Yahoo. Fifty percent of the revenue generated from advertisers is shared with the charity, school or nonprofit organization of your choice.

Taking it a step further, you can download the search engine to your Internet Explorer, Firefox or Mac toolbar.

My contribution: I downloaded the toolbar software. It takes up minimal space at the top of the browser. There's a tab for your search entry, a My Charity tab, where it saves the organization I chose (St. Bernard Project), followed by the clear selection option, highlight option and the popup blocker at the end. I also set it as my home page on my office computer.