Making a difference in the lives of others is part of our daily focus at FGX International. We participate in a number of programs designed to provide support to organizations dedicated to improving our way of life, on a local and national level. FGX International donates sunglasses and reading glasses to free clinics, under-developed countries such as Haiti to help give the gift of sight to the less fortunate. We also participate in several fundraising events for local organizations and charities. At FGX International, we take community commitment seriously and understand it is our responsibility to be a good corporate citizen by participating in these programs.
International Charitable Donations
FGX International Donated over $5 Million in Reading Glasses to Support Haiti Recovery Missions. FGX International donated 47,000 pairs of reading glasses, an approximate retail value of $700,000, to be used to support recovery efforts in Haiti and on medical missions around the world. One half of the donation, comprised of both Magnivision and Foster Grant readers, benefited CURE International centers in Haiti and Africa, and the remaining half was sent on medical missions to other third world countries in need.
Pink Hope
Through various “Pink Hope” promotions, FGX International has raised $60,000 for the National Breast Cancer Foundation. The National Breast Cancer Foundation’s mission is to save lives by increasing awareness of breast cancer through education and by providing mammograms for those in need.
RestoringVision.org
FGX International has donated hundreds of reading glasses and sunglasses to RestoringVision.org, a non-profit organization that supplies eyewear to groups going on missions to developing countries and domestic groups serving the underprivileged. The glasses brought big smiles to those who received them.
Supporting Our Community
For the past several years, FGX International and its employees have raised money for the American Heart Association. In 2011 FGXI raised nearly $7,000 during the Annual Southern New England Start! Heart Walk as well as participating in the Go Red for Women fashion gala.
For the second consecutive year, FGXI employees will be bowling in support of the Junior Achievement of Rhode Island fundraiser. The Junior Achievement is a network of dedicated business and community volunteers sharing their success and real-life skills through their hands-on, experiential programs that teach the key concepts of work readiness, entrepreneurship and financial literacy. Their legacy is that all Rhode Island youth be given access to opportunity and success.
In 2010, FGX International became a sponsor of the Rhode Island Foster Parents Association, contributing to their 8th Annual Cheeseburgers in Paradise Endless Summer event. The mission of the Rhode Island Foster Parents Association is to provide education and other forms of support to families that provide substitute care, and to the community at large, in order to further the cause of children who cannot live with their parents.
FGX International donated reading glasses to Attitudes & Attire, a non-profit agency dedicated to promoting personal growth for women seeking self-sufficiency. Their program provides the tools that raise self-esteem, promote ethics and build the confidence necessary to succeed in the workplace. Attitudes and Attire, based in Dallas, TX, expands the traditional job training curriculum to include positive self-image, appropriate workplace behavior and appearance. They help clients build self-confidence by identifying personal barriers for inner growth and develop a positive self-concept.
FGX International has been an enthusiastic sponsor of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Providence, whose mission is to inspire youth and children, especially those from diverse or difficult circumstances, to reach their full potential as productive, responsible and healthy members of their community, the state of Rhode Island and the nation.
FGX is very excited to be working with the United Way of Rhode Island, initiating an employee program during the summer of 2008 and still continuing today. FGX chose to work the United Way because of their stellar reputation and the work they have been doing in its immediate communities for over 80 years. The United Way works to address the issues Rhode Islanders care about most and works with a broad range of people and organizations to identify resolving pressing community needs. FGX employees have proudly contributed annually to the United Way of Rhode Island.
The Jimmy Fund Dana-Farber Cancer Institute is another organization that FGX International has sponsored, specifically to the Andrew T. Sarkisian Memorial Golf Tournament for the past two years. Since its founding in 1948, the Jimmy Fund has supported the fight against cancer in children and adults at Boston’s Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, helping to raise the chances of survival for cancer patients around the world.
FGX International donated reading glasses to the Rhode Island Free Clinic, the state’s only clinic exclusively providing free comprehensive primary care, prevention education and specifically referrals to the uninsured. FGX’s charitable donation is a demonstration of its commitment to helping the state’s most vulnerable population.