Picture this: You’re standing at the drugstore register when the cashier asks if you’d like to donate to charity. You're pressed for time, you don't quite hear her, you're in your own little world — whatever the excuse, you walk out of the store without making a donation.
But what if a little bit of charitable giving could land you a brand new Tesla? Raise your hand if that totally changes the game.
Such is the concept with Omaze, a site that makes giving to a good cause fun and beneficial for everybody. And yes: they’re actually giving away a Tesla.
The way Omaze works is simple: Make a donation starting as low as $10 and get a number of entries to win the prize. The more you give, the more entries and chances you'll have to win a brand new 2018 Tesla Model S P100D, an electric car with a record-breaking battery life. While $10 gets you 100 entries, donation increments go all the way up to $5,000, which would get you 50,000 entries and seriously increase your chances of taking this slick car home with you. (Don't worry: There are plenty of price tiers in between.)
Each donation for the Tesla giveaway benefits Big Green, an organization that helps children around the U.S. build lifelong healthy habits. This kind of charitable giving is at the core of what Omaze is all about.
Omaze was launched in 2012 by co-founders Ryan Cummins and Matt Pohlson after a fateful charity gala. The two were out-bid at an auction-style fundraiser for a chance to play basketball with their idol, Magic Johnson. The winning bidder donated $15,000 — a number they couldn't compete with on a college budget.
"That's when they realized that method of fundraising lacked both awareness and effect," Megan Reilly, a member of Omaze's team, told Mashable. "They thought, 'only the people in this room are learning about this cause, and we only raised 15 grand when we know people around the world would give to win this.'"
Since its launch, Omaze has raised over 130 million dollars for charity. However, after speaking to co-founder Matt Pohlson, it's clear the company doesn't plan to slow down any time soon.
"We want to be the first for-profit company to break a billion dollars raised for charity in a year," says Pohlson. "No other group has done that before, and we're on track to do it."
From attending the Game of Thrones final premiere as Jamie Lannister's plus-one, to driving off in a custom Lamborghini that's blessed and autographed by the actual Pope, it seriously seems like no dream is too big (or outlandish) for Omaze to pull off.
So get in the spirit of giving, folks, because this really is a win for everybody. At a minimum, you'll feel good for donating what you could to a worthy cause. And the best case scenario? You'll get the same do-good satisfaction — plus a brand new Tesla worth $135,000.
Donate for your chance to win here through Jan. 4, 2019.
Topics Social Good Tesla
