Introducing American Girl's Shine On Now Program (and enter to win an American Girl doll!)

I've been blogging about American Girl dolls for a long time, and my posts have ranged from whiny to defensive to humbled to crafty to excited to happy. Now I'm adding "meaningful" to that list. I am incredibly excited and honored to be working with American Girl to spread the word about their new charitable initiative -- the Shine On Now™ program -- and encourage all the American Girls out there to participate.

Starting July 13, American Girl's Shine On Now™ program will allow girls to log on to a website and donate 1-100 virtual stars each day. It doesn't cost anything to sign up for the program, and donating a star is free. For each star donated, American Girl will donate $1 (up to $1 million total in clothes, books, dolls and money) through July 31, to 4 designated charitable organizations.




Here's a more detailed description of the program from American Girl:
To foster a spirit of goodwill and help make the world a brighter place, American Girl is introducing Shine On Now™—a new charitable initiative that harnesses the collective power of girls to help others in need. Through Shine On Now, American Girl is calling on girls across the country to help the company give $1 million in clothes, books, dolls, and money to the following four organizations: Kids in Distressed Situations, Save the Children U.S.A., National Association of Children’s Hospitals and Related Institutions, and National Wildlife Federation.

Beginning July 13, 2010, girls can visit shineonnow.com to contribute a free ‘star’ to the effort. The goal is to collect one million stars by the end of the program on July 31, 2010. In addition, for every star a girl contributes (she can donate up to 100 each day!), her name will automatically be entered in a daily drawing to win a new My American Girl™ doll.

As part of the Shine On Now initiative and to further encourage girls to let their spirits shine, American Girl is also launching a brand-new virtual campus, Innerstar University™—a fun, safe online world where girls learn to be their best through a variety of games, quizzes, and other enriching activities that help boost their confidence and strength. Access to the new virtual world is free with each 18-inch My American Girl doll—the company’s newly enhanced contemporary product line that allows a girl to create a special doll as unique as she is.



Isn't that great? I love the way they have structured this program because it gives girls a way to contribute to a great cause. Girls aren't asked to donate their own money, just a little bit of time and effort. American Girl could easily have just donated the money outright, but they are empowering girls and making them feel like they are doing their part. I think parents will agree with me that this is a great learning opportunity for their daughters and a wonderful way to get children started with helping their community.

Making a difference couldn't be easier, and The Pea and I can't wait for the program to start!


Win an American Girl Doll
To celebrate the launch of Shine On Now™ and Innerstar University™, American Girl is generously providing one new American Girl doll to give away! the Can you believe it?? One luckyluckyluckylucky Bonggamom Finds reader will win a new American Girl doll.


Required Entry
Leave a comment on this post and nominate a special girl in your family or community who you think deserves to win this American Girl Doll, AND write about why she deserves this doll -- share with us what kinds of activities she is involved in, how she helps others, etc..... This entry must be completed before any extra entries will count.

(note: Since we're big American Girl Doll fans and I do blog frequently about American Girl dolls, I'd love it if the winner could send me a photo of the girl receiving her American Girl Doll and permit me to post the photo on this blog!)


Extra Entries
For extra entries, you can do any or all of the following. Please leave a separate comment on this post for each extra entry, with a way to verify the entry (i.e. tweet link, blog post link, blog comment link, Facebook id, Twitter id, etc.).

1) Follow Bonggamom Finds on Blogger(1 entry).

2) Become an American Girl Ambassador on ShineOnNow.com (1 entry)

3) Fill in the blank and write this on the Bonggamom Finds Facebook wall (1 entry):

I nominated my _______________ to win an American Girl doll! http://tinyurl.com/2ewj5dv #shineOnNow

4) Tweet this daily (1 entry per day)
Go to @bonggafinds 2 find out about American Girl's Shine On Now program (& enter to win an AG doll!) http://tinyurl.com/2ewj5dv #shineOnNow

4) Write this on the Shine On Now Facebook Fan wall (1 entry):

I'm excited to begin donating stars on ShineOnNow.com -- and excited for a chance to win an American Girl doll on Bonggamom Finds! http://tinyurl.com/2ewj5dv #shineOnNow

5) Follow Bonggamom Finds on Twitter and tweet this daily (1 entry per day):

Enter to win an American Girl Doll from @AGShineOnNow and @bonggafinds http://tinyurl.com/2ewj5dv #shineOnNow

6) Leave a link to this giveaway (http://tinyurl.com/2ewj5dv) on any giveaway linky, sweepstakes blog or sweepstakes forum (1 entry each time you leave a link, pls. leave a comment here and paste the URL of the post you left the link on).


Even More Extra Entries
Starting July 13, watch out for my American Girl Shine On Now post #2. You'll be able to gain more extra entries and log them on that post to increase your chances of winning this wonderful prize!


The Rules
This giveaway ends at midnight PST on July 31, 2010; I will draw the winner at random on August 1, from the list of eligible entries on my American Girl Shine On Now post #1 and post #2. Winner has 48 hours to respond to my tweets or emails notifying them of their win; otherwise, an alternate winner will be selected. I will post the winner's name in the comments section after he/she confirms acceptance. For additional giveaway rules, click here. Good luck!

Disclosure: I will be receiving an American Girl doll as a thank-you for participating in this campaign, but was not paid to review the product, administer this giveaway, promote the program or give my opinions. Product information is provided by the featured company/product and is clearly indicated as such. The views and opinions expressed here are my own.