A Light of Hope for Tsunami Victims

U.S. companies are rising to the call of much-needed relief for Tsunami victims, among them, The Coca Cola Co. with $10 Million, Exxon-Mobil Corp. with $5 Million, The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation with a pledge of $3 Million and Nike Inc., American Express Co., General Electric Co. at $1 Million each. While these companies are donating cash and vital supplies, other companies are designating large portions of their total gross sales toward the effort, bringing new definition to how the social responsibility of business can be carried out.

Lounge Light U.S.A. is joining the effort, literally becoming a light of hope by donating 30% of its online Lounge Light Candle sales to the effort. This is done by allowing buyers to enter a special "tsunami relief code" on the site that helps the relief effort — and also rewards the customers with a 10% discount for their participation. The product itself, the Lounge Light Candle, is a unique, free-standing pillar candle with a computer chip, battery and LED in its base, resulting in a soft glow of changing colors from deep within that complements the warmth of the burning candle.

Rand Davis, President and CEO of The Giving Art Group, Inc., handling the Lounge Light in the U.S., decided that he wanted to help: "The Lounge Light candle's been The Number One gift item in Europe this season and as we are just getting started here in the U.S., we knew we could take some of this heavy interest in the item and turn it into a relief effort in and of itself. This is what we, as one American company are doing, because we care."

Lounge Light USA pledges to donate 30% of the total sales price toward the relief efforts through the international humanitarian organization "CARE" for anyone who goes to the Lounge Light website to order one of these truly innovative pieces, and enters in the code "RELIEF" in the promotional code section.

When asked how this came about, Davis stated, "When something like this takes place, you feel like you'd like to contribute in a big way — and if you can't, you feel frustrated. After taking a look at it, I realized we could do something about it by using this model, and so we set up shop to do so — take an aesthetic item, a piece of beauty, and use it for good. It seemed like the right thing to do."

To see the Lounge Light and bring a light of hope to those deeply in need, visit their website at www.loungelightusa.com and enter in the code "RELIEF." As Davis says, "We want to help bring a light of hope through the contributions that we generate. This way, both we and our customers will be helping to do our part."