Professional Motion Picture Production and Distribution NEWS

To Support Vancouver Youth Theater in British Columbia, Kim Cattrall Chooses Same Grantmaker as Bob Dylan, Nike, and MASSIVEGOOD.

(Alexandria, VA) CAFAmerica, the U.S.-based member organization of the Charities Aid Foundation international network of offices, is quietly emerging as the "go-to" grantmaker for Hollywood stars and other entertainers, global charity organizations, and big-name brands.

The organization announced that it is helping actress Kim Cattrall, of "Sex in the City" and "The Ghost Writer" fame, to expedite a grant for the Vancouver Youth Theatre Society in British Columbia. Having grown up on Vancouver Island, Cattrall has a strong devotion to charities that support the arts in Canada. The grant will go to support youth acting and playbuilding programs as well as its unique collaborations with the Vancouver Art Gallery.

CAFAmerica CEO Susan Saxon-Harrold: "CAFAmerica has been very fortunate of late to be able to assist individuals, corporations and charitable initiatives in the spotlight to help them accomplish complex overseas giving objectives. Many people like Ms. Cattrall have strong personal ties with communities overseas from childhood or other situations. Others are looking specifically for our professional experience in international grantmaking. This is a major niche for CAFAmerica and we intend to continue to expand our efforts in it during the balance of 2010 and beyond."

In a statement, Kim Cattrall said: "Canada's support for the arts has historically been very strong and like many others I was very disheartened by the cuts announced last year. While there remains some uncertainty about the extent to which Arts funding has been restored in the current budget, I am encouraged that in a time of financial restraint and enormous pressures on government, steps have been taken to increase Arts funding. I am the living, breathing proof that support of the Arts is not a luxury, but rather a necessity. We must continue to contribute, nurture, educate, support, and fund future generations of Canadian talent in the Arts."

More information on CAFAmerica's recent charitable projects that have been in the spotlight:

* Launched in March with CAFAmerica's assistance, The MASSIVEGOOD America Fund -- supporting Millennium Foundation's major new global campaign to fight HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis -- is a unique initiative that enables millions of US travelers to make small donations of $2 or more online simply by "clicking" the MASSIVEGOOD link on commercial travel websites, such as those for Travelocity and Accor Hotels and through travel agents. The new MASSIVEGOOD America Fund at CAFAmerica will serve as one of the campaign's innovative funding mechanisms.

* CAFAmerica announced in December 2009 that it partnered with Nike on a new Donor Advised Fund (DAF) to distribute proceeds from an ongoing eBay auction of newly developed Nike Pro Combat football gear from the nation's top 10 NCAA university football programs. Each school selected individual charities to receive the proceeds from their respective sales. CAFAmerica oversaw the grants made from the DAF.

* CAFAmerica announced in December 2009 that Columbia/Epic, a label group of Sony Music Entertainment, opened a Donor Advised Fund for the purpose of donating royalties from Bob Dylan's new Christmas album, "Christmas In The Heart," to make possible grants to Crisis, one of the UK's leading national charities dedicated to ending homelessness by delivering life-changing services and campaigning for change. Columbia/Epic worked with CAFAmerica to establish the DAF to convert Bob Dylan's album royalties into grants for Crisis.

CAFAmerica also works with such major entities as NBA Cares and Pepsico.

In October 2009, CAFAmerica made the Chronicle of Philanthropy's "Philanthropy 400" list of U.S. private fundraising charities.



Resources:

www.cafamerica.org