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Initial Press Release

Press Release: APRIL 10, 1995

Press Contact:
Steve Glikbarg, Co-Executive Director
Impact Online
715 Colorado Avenue
Palo Alto, CA 94303
Tel: (415) 327-1389
Fax: (415) 327-1395
EmailSteve Glikbarg


Press Release


NONPROFITS FIND A NEW HOME ON THE INTERNET

PALO ALTO, CALIF., April 10, 1995 -- Impact Online, a new nonprofit, seeks to promote involvement with other nonprofit organizations nationwide through the use of technology. To meet this goal, Impact Online has created a site on the World Wide Web that offers an interactive way for individuals to learn about nonprofits and the issues these organizations are addressing. By making it easy for people to learn and get involved, Impact Online will be fostering the interests of those who want to make a difference. Impact Online plans to offer individuals many ways to make a difference including buying products for sale that support nonprofits, making donations, providing information on volunteer events that they can participate in and even offering an opportunity to become a virtual volunteer, a person who supports nonprofit organizations via email.

Impact Online will feature information on a variety of social issues, with a new topic appearing every other month. Impact Online's first featured issue is homelessness. With information provided from the National Coalition for the Homeless, Impact Online answers questions and provides the facts on homelessness in America. Other nonprofits that are profiled on Impact Online include: The Points of Light Foundation, Washington, DC; Mid-Peninsula YWCA, Palo Alto, Calif.; Plugged In, East Palo Alto, CA; the Volunteer Exchange of Santa Clara County, CA; Golden Gate Community, Inc., San Francisco, Calif.; Innovative Housing, San Francisco, CA and many others. Within the nonprofit profiles, users can read about the programs, goals and accomplishments of the organization. On a more personal level, many of the nonprofits feature photographs and sounds that bring the organization to life on the screen. From an executive director revealing his most personally rewarding experience to a formerly homeless person describing his new job, Impact Online will offer a new and compelling format for learning and understanding. The site also features a gallery of photographs by award-winning photographer Howard Schatz.

In addition to expanding its coverage to other issues, Impact Online will seek to expand to other cities around the country. For each city, Impact Online will profile at least five nonprofits for each issue covered. Targeted cities for the near future include Boston, New York, Washington and Seattle. To serve the needs and interests of its users, Impact Online will also offer a broader base of information by connecting to other nonprofit sites on the Internet.

THE ORGANIZATION
IOL is a collaborative organization, pro-actively seeking to work with other nonprofit organizations, corporations and government agencies. For example, in the field of volunteering it is working with The Points of Light Foundation and the Volunteer Exchanges to determine how online technologies can best serve volunteer matching - currently a face-to-face activity. For each social issue that it presents, Impact Online will seek out community experts, at both national and local levels. Impact Onlinewill also seek out experts in each city that it covers to help select the nonprofits to be profiled.

The staff of Impact Online includes co-founders Steve Glikbarg and Cindy Shove. Their experiences include several successful entrepreneurial efforts, work with nonprofits from around the country, traditional and new media publishing as well as financial and consulting positions. Steve Glikbarg was recently cited in US News and World Report as one of growing number of business school graduates who are using their MBA skills to make a difference. both founders hold MBA's.

Impact Online is incorporated with non-profit 501(c)(3) status pending. Funder and in-kind donors include Internex, Inc.; Cooley Godward; Neihaus Ryan Haller Public Relations, Inc and others. Additional funding will be generated by foundation grants, corporate sponsorships and individual donations.

LOOKING AHEAD
Impact Online welcomes queries, suggestions and comments from its users and other nonprofit organizations. Impact Online especially encourages businesses that are seeking ways to get their employees more involved with the nonprofit community to contact it.


Copyright © 1996 Impact Online, Incorporated. All Rights Reserved.