The Beatles had it right. We all get by with a little help from our friends.

Other things they got right: long hair and mustaches.

Other things they got right: long hair and mustaches.

We’ve certainly had our fair share of help along the way, often coming from the most unexpected places. When Global Exchange first started in 1988, our office was furnished with donations, our decor a mishmash of orange desks and a number of posture-enhancing chairs from a Catholic girls school (some of which are still in the office today!) A kindly guy at Kinkos let us come in after midnight to print our pamphlets for free. And our first major donor gave us $15,000 – allowing us to hire our first staff person AND buy a laser printer. (Laser printers were a pretty big deal back in 1988).

The perfect color for driving global revolution

The perfect color for driving global revolution

The generosity and dedication of many people helped us through our early days, and a diverse, international network of supporters continues to provide the foundation and strength for all we do. A quarter century of help from our friends has allowed us to accomplish a great deal in advancing human rights and promoting resilient ecosystems. From challenging the travel ban to Cuba to demanding Freedom From Oil, you’ve been there.

But we’re not done yet. Far from it.

We’re putting out a call to our support network to help us drive the next quarter century of change by becoming Global Exchange Monthly Sustainers (GEMS). By making a regular, monthly gift, you can provide a bedrock of financial support that allows us to focus our energies on the most pressing issues of our time: ending the drug war, stopping fracking, and getting money out of politics.

Sign up here to become a Global Exchange Monthly Sustainer.

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One of these could be yours if you become a GEMS today. Blue desk not included.

Over the next month, we’re recruiting 25 new monthly givers, each giving $25 or more a month: 25 GEMS for 25 years! We’re going to raise $7,500 to give our work a boost over the coming year.

Will you be one of the 25? A gift awaits you.

There’s a special bonus when you become a GEMS at $25 or more a month; you will receive a book signed by Noam Chomsky, our 2013 Human Rights Award Honoree. If you’re interested, you better hurry. We can only guarantee books for the first 25 people to sign up at $25 or more a month.

Click here to sign up now.

And if you happen to have an extra orange desk lying around…just kidding.

This week we are thanking and recognizing the people who make Global Exchange’s work possible.  We’re highlighting a few individuals who represent the thousands who make up the amazing global network of change makers.

In this post, we thank Global Exchange Monthly Sustainer (GEMS) Jennifer Carino. To read about others we’re thankful for, click here.

Jennifer Carino, Committed to the Cause

When Jennifer Carino stopped working at Global Exchange in 1998, she knew that she wanted to continue her support for an organization that had grown near and dear to her heart.  She was less confident, however, that she would remember to mail in her donation once a year.

So she became a Global Exchange Monthly Sustainer (GEMS).  Every month, her donation is made automatically by credit card.  Computers, as it turns out, aren’t all that forgetful.

We don’t mind licking a few less envelopes either. Monthly givers like Jennifer help reduce overhead by eliminating many mailing and outreach costs, allowing more of her donation to go towards our programmatic work.

More of each dollar goes towards crafting local ordinances to safeguard against corporate harm.  More of each dollar goes toward stopping lobbyists from hijacking our democracy.  More of each dollar goes toward ending the drug war and human rights abuses in Mexico.  More of each dollar goes towards communities, farmers, towards realigning our global social and economic order to meet the needs of people and ecosystems, not corporate shareholders.

Not to mention, fewer mailings means less paper, so giving monthly is more sustainable.  Over 250 people give each month, just like Jennifer.

So Jennifer Carino and all of our GEMS, for allowing us to focus on the work that matters most (and for saving us a few stamps)…

Thank you.

P.S.  Have you watched our new Thank You video yet?

This is Part 2 in an 8-Part “Giving Thanks” series, a Global Exchange exclusive highlighting individuals (chosen by Global Exchange staff members) who are contributing to our social justice work in some way. This series will culminate with a “Giving Thanks” video to be launched right here on Wednesday, November 24th. So please join us in recognizing those special individuals who are helping to make this world a better place.

Today Global Exchange’s Corey Hill thanks GEMS member Debbie Bruell

I’m thankful for Debbie Bruell.  Debbie’s a big part of what makes Global Exchange a success, yet before I called to ask whether she minded if I wrote about her, she didn’t even know what a big deal she was!

Debbie, you see, is a part of the Global Exchange Monthly Sustainers Program (GEMS).  GEMS allows donors to set up an automated monthly donation.  They choose the amount.  They provide the payment information.  We take care of the rest.  Every month, Debbie and hundreds of other GEMS make an automated donation to Global Exchange’s work.  Without even thinking about it, they’ve helped make our work easier and more effective.

I talked to Debbie last spring for the first time just after the B.P. Oil Spill. She was as upset as I was about the disaster in the Gulf, and she wanted to do something about it.  So to help fund our new work around clean energy, Debbie agreed to increase her monthly giving, just like that.

That’s the beauty of it, and that’s why folks like Debbie are so special.  Their regular donations allow Global Exchange to keep the doors open and our work going.

That’s why I’m thankful for Debbie Bruell.  She made the commitment to peace, economic justice, and a clean environment, and honors her commitment once a month. In return, we honor our commitment to her and other GEMS folks by working hard every day towards the world they (and you) want.  It’s a good system.  One, I think, for which we can all be thankful. –Corey Hill

Thanks to Debbie and all of our GEMS folks!

If you’d like to join Debbie and others in becoming a monthly sustainer, here’s the place to go.

Who are YOU thankful for? Add your own thank you message in the Comments section to recognize someone you think is doing great social justice work. And if you feel so inspired, Retweet and Share this post to help spread the recognition all of our ‘Thankees’ deserve. Thank YOU.