One by One

Children in Japan who enter state protection following child abuse, or the death or incapacity of parents, traditionally have two paths: they enter a childcare facility or they are placed in a foster home.

Childcare facilities care for 30,000 children, while foster parents can only host about 3,600. Both systems are overwhelmed and it is becoming increasingly difficult to give children recovering from traumatic situations the care they need.

A new partnership model between Amway Japan, Crop Minori and the Japanese government is creating a solution that draws on the strengths and resources of each sector.

At the heart of the partnership is a Family Home for children. Family Homes are run by nonprofit workers and experienced foster parents, providing a home environment for a small number of children with caring adults who establish a stable environment where family-type relationships can flourish.

In 2009, the government created 126 homes across Japan. As part of this new partnership, the new Amway One by One Family Home has been established just outside Tokyo, near the mountains and ocean. The government will sponsor the needs of the children, Crop Minori will help to provide staff and programming and Amway will sponsor the rent of the home and provide volunteers.

Every institution has a role to play in the care of children. This innovative partnership blurs the lines of responsibility among business, nonprofit, government and volunteers, giving everyone a chance to create a bright future for children in need.

Thanks to Hideya Tateno for sharing this story.

Over the last couple of years, the reigning Miss America champions have been wonderful spokespeople not only for the Artistry brand of Amway cosmetics, but also of causes focused on children’s issues.

In 2010, Miss America Caressa Cameron visited patients at the DeVos Children’s Hospital in Amway’s hometown to hand out books and read with the kids.

Last year, Miss America Teresa Scanlan helped us build organic gardens for youth with Boys & Girls Clubs of America.

We were excited to hear that this year’s Miss America, Laura Kaeppeler, cited her platform as mentoring children of incarcerated parents.

In fact, Amway has supported the US Dream Academy for more than six years, providing mentors and support to children whose parents have been incarcerated.

Working with Miss America in 2012, we look forward to a great year of partnership for children.

After hearing news of so many disasters in 2011, few people heard of the heavy rains and flooding in the Philippines in December.

Hundreds of people died in the aftermath of Typhoon Sedong in Cagayan de Oro. It was the worst natural disaster in the Philippines in a decade.

Amway Philippines rallied to help. They packaged relief goods, with help from Amway distributors and employees. And they set up donation sites to help the families affected by the flooding.

Last month, Amway leaders turned over a check for P500,000 ($11,700 USD) to the Philippine Red Cross for the rehabilitation of victims of Typhoon Sendong in Cagayan de Oro.

We extend our appreciation to colleagues and friends in the Philippines for their generosity.

We don’t often single out individual employees in our blog. But anyone who braves 14 degree Fahrenheit (-10C) weather at 6:00 a.m. to jump into an icy lake, deserves some extra attention.

Last week, Jim Ayres, Vice President in the R&D/QA division at Amway headquarters, donned an Amway One by One tshirt over his college football jersey and took the “Polar Plunge” to raise money for Special Olympics Michigan.

His efforts raised $4,500 for athletes with special needs. Jim also serves on the board of directors of Special Olympics Michigan, and has been a longtime volunteer.

That’s refreshing!

Today, the Amway One by One blog received a fresh new look and feel. We think it better reflects the spirit of the campaign and the beautiful images of the children being helped around the world.

What do you think?

We also created a new tab on the Amway Facebook page. There you can find stories and videos of some of our top programs under the categories of LIVE, LEARN, ACHIEVE AND PLAY. Click here to check it out.

Thanks to all of our readers for giving feedback and sharing stories about the projects around the world.

Most of all, thanks to the countless Amway givers and volunteers who make the world a better place because of their devotion to helping children!

Here are a few numbers to tell this story:

20

That’s the number of years Amway has been operating in Hungary, and the reason for celebrating an anniversary last year.

250

That’s the number of Amway Business Owners and employees who designed an anniversary project to teach children about the environment, while beautifying their country.

1991

That’s the year Amway started in Hungary. It’s also the number of trees planted across the country in a single year, all donated by Amway Business Owners.

7000

That’s the number of children that participated in the tree planting program, and learned something new about how to take care of their planet.

Taking children from the family home is an extreme situation, and requires a group of caring, dedicated individuals to help children recover, and restore their smiles.

For 11 years now, Amway Greece has been helping children who suffer from abuse and neglect by supporting the Smile of the Child Foundation.

The organization provides shelter, counseling, medical support and long-term assistance to children, in coordination with families and governmental agencies.

Amway not only donates funds and products, but employees and Amway Business Owners in Greece also organize programs for the children to feel normal, have fun, and experience new things.

Last month, Amway staff took 60 children from different Smile of the Child shelters on a trip to visit the Museum of Natural History with the participation of 60 children from different shelters.

Their smiles were evident, and gave us hope that their futures will be bright.

Thanks to Karin Schmid and Vivian Tzanni for sharing this story.

Happy Chinese New Year! It’s the Year of the Dragon, marked as the biggest holiday of the year for our colleagues in China.

Since 2004, Amway has established its own way to celebrate in some of the eastern and western provinces of the country.

We partner with local charitable organizations to organize New Year Charity Concerts, with most ticket revenues contributed toward helping underprivileged children.

Amway has sponsored 70 concerts in 24 cities, raising $1.2 million. Nearly 15,000 children have been impacted. That’s something to celebrate!

View a slideshow of the most recent concert by clicking here.

Thanks to Rowley Luo for sharing this story.

What started as a health event in Taiwan, soon spilled over into a significant initiative for children.

Late last year, Amway held three Nutrilite Bike Day events in Taipei, Taichung and Kaohsiung to promote exercise and nutrition.

People in Taiwan don’t often get the chance to ride their bikes freely on major highways in the fresh air with friends and family. So the event attracted large audiences, with more than 32,000 participating, including many Amway distributors and employees.

Every good ride needs a good finish. In Taipei, the ride ended at the Presidential Office Square. There, Amway set up a “charity carnival” that raised money for children with mental and physical disabilities.

At the end of the races, the event raised NT$7.1 million (US$231,648) for the Angel Heart Family Social Welfare Foundation.

In this bike race, everyone won.

Thanks to Julie Wu for sharing this story.

We talk a lot about the work Amway people do for children around the world … because there is a lot going on!

What we’ve learned is that our peers in the direct selling industry are doing a lot for their local communities too.

Here’s a video from the Direct Selling Education Foundation highlighting the collective work of our industry: