Circle Furniture has been named an inaugural retailer
of the Help 1 Up program, the home
furnishing industry's unified charitable effort to support furniture banks.
A furniture bank is a non-profit organization which
collects unwanted furnishings from the general public and provides it
to people in need. Typical clients of furniture banks are women and children
escaping domestic violence, families below the poverty line, victims
of natural disasters, and others requiring emergency assistance. Furniture
banks provide basic home furnishings such as beds, a kitchen table, and
dishes.
The Help 1 Up program encourages consumers to shop at
participating retailers and add 1% to their next furniture purchase.
The Help 1 Up program is administered by the National Furniture Bank
Association (NFBA).
As a pilot retailer, Circle Furniture will serve a critical
role in fine tuning the Help 1 Up program by providing insight to the
NFBA prior to national deployment at thousands of retail locations.
Richard Tubman, an owner of Circle Furniture, said
the Help 1 Up program is a great way for Circle Furniture to extend their
support of community efforts. "Circle Furniture supports a number
of local organizations benefiting kids," Tubman said. "Help
1 Up provides us and our customers the opportunity to be a formative
part of a national effort which will help thousands of children, in the
local area and all across the country."
Each year tens of thousands of people receive donated
beds, kitchen tables, dressers, dishes, and utensils from furniture banks.
According to a 2004 survey of furniture bank operators, children represent
the largest percentage of their service base. The tagline for Help 1
Up is "No child in America should have to sleep on the floor."
"The Help 1 Up program will do a tremendous amount
of good for families and kids in need," said Tom Polk, chairman
of the NFBA. "At the same time, participating retailers benefit
from increased sales and making a positive difference in peoples' lives.
Many consumers will be motivated to shop at a participating retailer,
rather than a retailer that doesn't wish to support the effort."
About the National Furniture Bank Association (NFBA) The NFBA is the
non-profit affiliation of furniture banks. The organization's mission
is to create comfortable home environments by providing furnishings
to those in need. Contact the NFBA to learn more about the Help 1 Up
program, or to find out how retailers can participate. www.help1up.org.
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