On the subject of charities, comedian Ben Stiller has come a long way from his days of “Derek Zoolander Center For Children Who Can’t Read Good and Wanna Learn To Do Other Stuff Good Too” to arrive at something quite possibly even funnier: STILLERSTRONG. His organization to ameliorate poverty in Haiti proudly boasts the slogan: “stealing great ideas from other people’s charities to build a school in Haiti” and despite the tongue and cheek, his business plan is viable and he has already achieved considerable success. Stillerstrong’s viral marketing campaign includes the likes of Owen Wilson, Robert DeNiro, Ryan Seacrest, and of course – the illustrious Lance Armstrong  – whose “Livestrong” campaign was the original source of Stiller’s hilarious and ingenious idea heist. Now with headbands instead of wristbands, you too can change the world.

Stiller originally founded STILLERSTRONG in 2009 after a visit to Haiti moved him to further action. With its foundation, he promised to provide a school, clean drinking water, and improvements in agriculture for the small village of Cévérine. Yet after the earthquake on January 12, 2010, Stiller decided to shift the focus of his charity to a larger scale. He launched the Haitian School Initiative in partnership with Architecture for Humanity and Artists for Peace and Justice (where he now sits on the board) in order to set up temporary schools in Haiti where they are now mostly destroyed.

“Schools are a safe haven for kids in a time of crisis and are instrumental in delivering not only education, but also health care, nutrition, and other critical services,” Stiller explains on his website. Architecture for Humanity co-founder, Cameron Sinclair notes, “It could take well over 5 years to repair Haiti’s educational infrastructure.” That’s time young learners don’t have to lose.

By texting STILLER to 85944, buying a STILLERSTRONG headband, or making a direct donation on your credit card, you can add to the $300,000 and growing amount that Stiller’s campaign has already raised for Haiti. If you don’t, Ben Stiller promises to beat your @$$. (No seriously, watch the videos).

And oh yeah – retweet it, Ashton.

Stealing great ideas from other people’s charities to build a school in Haiti…

• Organization Type: Non-Profit
• Website: http://stillerstrong.org/#give
• Founder(s): Ben Stiller
• Founded: 2009
• See complete company list here

Contributor Profile: Ashley

Ashley is a friend of anyone who is fighting the good fight for social change. She currently resides in Bilbao, Spain where she is teaching English and researching the history of the Basque conflict. Personal blog
Twitter: @socialearth

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