Fine Lines Raises More Than $11,000 in Support of World Central Kitchen

February 8, 2022 —Gift for Life today announced that a January fundraiser spearheaded by Matthew Katzenson, CEO of Fine Lines sales agency and GFL immediate past chair, raised $11,000+ for World Central Kitchen (WCK).

“I have been a long-time board member of Gift for Life, and a strong supporter of World Central Kitchen, an incredible organization which is always first to the frontlines,” said Katzenson. “WCK provides meals in response to humanitarian, climate and community crises, building resilient food systems with locally-led solutions, whether in Haiti, Greece, Tahoe or Kentucky.”

With an initial goal of $5,000, Katzenson pledged to donate $1 to WCK for every order Fine Lines wrote in January. The fundraiser grew exponentially, following Katzenson’s invitation to his vendors to join the effort by donating $1 for each order written by Fine Lines.  The successful community effort expanded even further with outreach to agency partners and support from Just Got 2 Have It! and Sugar B Sales. 

To date, Fine Lines and the agency’s sales representatives have raised $11,507 during the January 2022 Los Angeles, Las Vegas and Seattle Markets with the help of the following vendors and agencies:

Denik

Designworks Collective

Enewton

Homesick Candles

Infinite She

Jellycat

Just Got 2 Have It!

K Hall Studio

Meri Meri

Poppy Handcrafted Popcorn

Rock Scissor Paper

Skeem Design

Sugar B Sales – Seattle

“We appreciate Matt’s passion and his creativity in developing easy ways to engage our industry in fundraising for World Central Kitchen,” said Cole Daugherty, Gift for Life chair.  “We invite other buyers and sellers in the industry to follow Matt’s lead by launching their own initiatives.”

To more information about Fine Lines, visit www.finelinescompany.com, and to donate, visit: https://donate.wck.org/FineLinesJan22.

If you’d like to host your own fundraiser for World Central Kitchen, click HERE or contact a member of the Gift for Life board.

About World Central Kitchen (WCK) 

Founded in 2010 by Chef José Andrés, World Central Kitchen (WCK) uses the power of food to nourish communities and strengthen economies in times of crisis and beyond. In 2020, with COVID-19 straining traditional food security safety nets like school feeding programs, city services and food banks, WCK pivoted to safely distribute individually packaged, fresh meals in communities that need support and launched the Restaurants for the People program to scale nationwide. This program meets critical needs on two fronts: buying meals directly from restaurants and delivering them to Americans who need help. To date, the program has worked with 2,500 restaurants to serve over 12 million restaurant meals and have disbursed more than $135 million dollars directly to restaurants owners in 400 cities across 35 states. For information, visit www.wck.org.

About Gift for Life

Gift for Life was founded by Peter Schauben of Appleman Schauben in 1992 in response to the tragic loss of industry lives to AIDS. The organization’s first meeting at the National Stationery Show brought together a cross-section of the industry’s leading publishers, market centers, sales reps, manufacturers and retailers – all willing to convene and work together towards a common goal. Since that time, Gift for Life has raised nearly $6 million for AIDS research, education, treatment and care through nationwide at-market events, cause marketing programs and direct donations. With COVID-19 temporarily causing cancelation of in-person events at industry markets, Gift for Life pivoted towards online digital events with a specific emphasis on COVID-related hunger relief. As Gift for Life celebrates its 30th anniversary in 2022, the all-volunteer organization will continue to support programs that address hunger relief. More information is available at www.giftforlife.org. 

Media Contact:

Cathy Steel, cathysteel@cathysteelassociates.com, 203-340-9251