We believe it’s important for people to have a safe, clean place to live.

Since the Amway One by One Campaign for Children partnered with Habitat for Humanity last year, distributors and employees across the Americas have worked hard to make that happen.

Here are three examples where our distributors and employees are building hope for others.

In Guatemala, Amway employees and distributors from the United States, Mexico, Barbados, Guatemala, Costa Rica, Puerto Rico, Honduras, Colombia and El Salvador built a dozen homes. They also raised half a million dollars, matching a $250,000 gift of Tim Foley, longtime Amway distributor and Amway Founders Council member. These  funds will finance construction of more than 40 homes throughout Latin America over the next five years.

In São Paulo, Brazil, Amway distributors and employees raised nearly $5,000, and used it to renovate two homes. Their next  project? Already they are evaluating how to apply their time and talents to help people affected by the devastating floods in Rio de Janeiro.

Finally, after raising $16,000,  more than 25 Amway Colombia distributors, employees and their families constructed two homes in only two days.

Visit our Amway One by One blog to learn how we’re making a difference in 2012. Make your own difference, too, at Habitat for Humanity.

We think our Fulton Innovation eCoupled technology rocks.  After all, the way eCoupled wirelessly powers cars and electronics is pretty cool stuff.

If you think this technology rocks, too, help get eCoupled on the agenda of the 2012 South by Southwest (SXSW) Conference.

Conference presenters are selected partially by popular vote through SXSW’s “Panel Picker.”  So if you’d like to see Fulton present about the future of wireless during this interactive, film and music festival, just click here.  Choose the “thumbs up” sign to let organizers know you think Fulton’s “Juice without Wires” presentation is an “idea that rocks.” 

But if you want to see wireless power at work a bit sooner, this video shows how eCoupled powers everything from appliances to technology.

YouTube Direkt

Amway hosted  hundreds of special visitors today. 

It’s “Take Your kids to Work” day at Amway’s World Headquarters, so some of our employees brought their children to work for the day.

In addition to seeing what Mom or Dad do all day, our eight to 14-year-old guests learned about Amway’s global operations and our health, beauty and home products. 

Kids taste-tested the latest Nutrilite drinks and bars,  had their skin analyzed to see what Artistry products are right for them and saw demonstrations of our Amway Home products in action.  

They enjoyed “employee benefits” like kick-boxing and yoga classes at Amway’s Fitness Center.  

And they spent time with another special visitor to Amway today – Nutrilite spokesperson and football great Kurt Warner.

Amway U.K.’s Britain’s Top Real Role Model competition sought to identify the entrepreneur who would  inspire others through their accomplishments and example. 

They found their winner in Melanie Bryan, an award-winning social enterprise entrepreneur from Lancashire.   

Judges selected  Melanie for the honor over 36 other finalists for her work with hundreds of charities and communities to help them achieve their goals. 

Melanie is founder of WhyNotChange,  which works with organizations to build  “‘can do’ (capability and confidence) to make a positive difference in your own lives, communities and businesses.”

It’s that “can do” attitude that made Melanie Britain’s Top Real Role Model and will serve as real inspiration for other entrepreneurs in the U.K. and beyond.

China’s very own world class figure skating show is back.

Taking the ice for a second year are Shen Xue and Zhao Hongbo, the Chinese Olympic gold medalists who exchanged vows during last year’s debut of Artistry on Ice presented by the Artistry brand and Amway China.

Inspired by the television series Sex and the City starring actress Sarah Jessica Parker, the pair will skate to a newly themed “Art and City” show.

Earlier today at the Trends Night Event in Shanghai, Amway China shared the news that Parker will be the spokesperson for both Artistry on Ice and the Artistry Intensive Skincare Renewing Peel exclusively in the Greater China Region from September 2011-February 2012.

Artistry on Ice kicked-off earlier this week in Beijing and will continue on to performances in  Shanghai and Taipei.

Soweto, just outside of Johannesburg, is home to more than 3 million people and is the most populous black community in South Africa.

Now Amway lives there, too.

Amway recently opened two Mobile Sales Centres (MSCs) so that Soweto residents – many of whom struggle with the availability of affordable transportation – do not have to commute long distances to see and test Amway products, learn about the business and receive training.

MSCs are a combination of an expo hall and meeting rooms that are modular. They’re designed to live in one location for as long as necessary, but can easily be moved.

Soweto’s MSCs are located in areas that are hubs of business and entrepreneurship, but they did cover uncharted territory.

“When we requested permission to open these facilities, it became clear to us that the city had never received a formal application by a company wishing to respect all local laws and comply with water safety, emergency and other procedures,” said Amway South Africa’s  External Affairs Manager Makhaya Manie.

Other companies simply set up shop. In what may seem like a small gesture, Amway waited. Doing it right took two years, but now that the ball is rolling, the vision is to place 90 MSCs in black communities all over South Africa. Residents will be able to walk or cycle to them and they’re intended for much more than selling.

“The goal is to give people a place to gather, discuss community needs, watch broadcasts of important local, provincial or national events and more,” said Manie.

In other words, we plan to be a good neighbor.

Amway’s U.S. offices and world headquarters are closed Friday, July 1, and Monday, July 4 in celebration of the U.S. Independence Day holiday.

We wish our employees, distributors and friends a safe and happy holiday weekend.

And for those spending Indpendence Day in West Michigan, we invite you to join us for the Amway 4th of July Family Fireworks Celebration at Grand Rapids’  Ah Nab Awen Park Monday evening.  There will be music, children’s activities, and of course, fireworks to celebrate America’s independence.

When the Amway 50th anniversary exhibit at the Grand Rapids Public Museum closed in December 2010, people asked where it would appear next.

As of today, this telling of the story of Amway has come home.

Amway Chairman Steve Van Andel today dedicated Amway Heritage Hall, which captures much of the original exhibit at our world headquarters.   

Steve said one of his favorite elements is a collection of letters  his father Jay Van Andel wrote to Rich DeVos when the future Amway co-founders were serving in the Armed Forces.   In these letters,  “Dad talked about what they were going to do and the businesses they were going to start” after their service ended.

As Steve told a group of employees today, the exhibit “commemorates the journey Dad and Rich took more than 50 years ago.”

In the case of the exhibit, its journey ends as it comes home to Amway to stay.

Today, Amway was proud to host the Quaeris Unconference, an open and frank discussion on attracting and retaining a new generation of  young talent with West Michigan mayors (pictured, left to right) Gary Nelund of Norton Shores, George Heartwell of Grand Rapids and Kurt Dykstra of Holland.

Quaeris was founded in 2010 to promote West Michigan as a place where business thrives and people want to live and work. Quaeris means, “to seek,” and the name stems from the Michigan state motto, “If you seek a pleasant peninsula, look about you.”

Amway President Doug DeVos started the Unconference by encouraging participants to turn today’s dialogue into real action. “I’ve lived here all my life. I love it here, but there is one thing I know: we could do better,” said DeVos, who believes West Michigan can make people feel more welcome; encourage them to get involved in public service; and ensure our college graduates stay here to make a living and make a difference.

Amway also concluded the Unconference with a presentation on attracting and retaining GenY by Laura Davis, who directs employee engagement and talent acquisition for Amway. Here, more than 100 interns from 50-plus universities enter the doors each year. And 33 percent of them become full-time employees. According to Davis, creating a sense of belonging for GenY is one critical component to building their employer loyalty.

In between DeVos and Davis, ideas like clustering, investing in urban cores and communicating the diversity of experiences available within an easily commutable distance in West Michigan were heard.

Fireworks, a parade and musical talent — our 4th of July celebration has it all!

Announced this morning, Florida pop-punk band We the Kings and up-and-coming country singer Ashley Gearing will perform at the Amway 4th of July Family Fireworks celebration on the evening of Monday, July 4.

The free and family-friendly Independence Day celebration will kick off at 5 p.m. with a parade featuring former U.S. Congressman Vern Ehlers as grand marshal. Live music at both Ah Nab Awen Park and Rosa Parks Circle will precede the fireworks display at 10:30 p.m. with We the Kings to perform immediately following.

We look forward to seeing you there!