A Huge Thanks to a Huge Inspiration

WE ARE HAPPY TO ANNOUNCE A GIFT FROM SPANX & GLOBALGIVING.

Like so many women, we *love* Sara Blakely, the founder and CEO of Spanx. We love her not only because of her honesty and vulnerability on all things—from business to body and motherhood to marriage—but because she agrees with us that women are one of the world’s greatest resources. And one in which she is investing, in a big way. 

On September 17, we received word from The Spanx by Sara Blakely Foundation that Impact Partners has been selected to receive $5,000 as part of The Red Backpack Fund because of our deep desire to invest in making our Master Plan consulting program more accessible to female executives at nonprofits and social enterprises around the world.  

The Red Backpack Fund is a COVID-19 relief and recovery program for female entrepreneurs led by the shapewear empire’s charitable arm and GlobalGiving. The reason behind the $5,000 dollar amount is that that is how much Sara Blakely initially invested into Spanx. Yes, $5,000 from her life’s savings selling fax machines!  

We are humbled to have been awarded this amongst the 999 fellow recipients moving the world forward and invite every female entrepreneur to take a look at the opportunities that both partners provide year-round: 

• The Spanx by Sara Blakely Foundation also offers support for female social entrepreneurs, investments in maternal health, in female storytellers, and in micro-loan capital for partner Grameen America. 

• The opportunities don’t stop at Spanx. Go over to their partner GlobalGiving now, right in time for the platform’s biggest time of the year. Applications for its 2020 Giving Season Accelerator are due October 16, 2020; this is a chance for nonprofits anywhere in the world to gain more nonprofit-centric skills and earn donor money. 

Read the official press release below! 

Impact Partners Selected by GlobalGiving As Red Backpack Fund Recipient, Receives $5,000 Grant From The Spanx by Sara Blakely Foundation To Combat COVID-19 Crisis  

August 17, 2020 — GlobalGiving announced today that Impact Partners has been selected to receive a $5,000 COVID-19 relief and recovery grant from The Red Backpack Fund, an opportunity for small businesses and nonprofits made possible by The Spanx by Sara Blakely Foundation. 

“My hope is that this gift will help alleviate some of the pressures caused by this horrible pandemic. Twenty years ago, I started Spanx with $5,000 in savings, and I see this as a time to pay it forward. Small business is the backbone of our culture. I know what it’s like to be a small business owner, and I want to provide some relief to these entrepreneurs during this time,” said Spanx Founder Sara Blakely. 

The Spanx by Sara Blakely Foundation donated $5 million to support female entrepreneurs in the wake of COVID-19 and teamed up with GlobalGiving to establish The Red Backpack Fund. 

Thousands of business owners and nonprofit founders from across the United States and its territories applied to receive a grant from The Red Backpack Fund to combat economic hardship caused by COVID-19. Impact Partners was selected for the grant based on its outstanding application, its urgent need for COVID-19 relief, and its demonstrated capacity to overcome COVID-19 setbacks. 

GlobalGiving, a 501(c)(3) organization with nearly two decades of grantmaking experience, will award grants to at least 1,000 women entrepreneurs from now through September 2020 through The Red Backpack Fund. GlobalGiving has assembled a 100% women-led team to lead the grantee selection process. The team includes grant specialists, social workers, female entrepreneurs, analysts, and monitoring and evaluation experts. 

"We're proud to announce the grantees of The Red Backpack Fund. They have successfully undergone GlobalGiving’s rigorous vetting process, and we believe this grant will help them continue to thrive, despite the shifting economic circumstances brought on by this crisis," said GlobalGiving CEO Alix Guerrier. "The world needs more women-led organizations who are a key force in overcoming COVID-19 and establishing a better normal." 

Learn more about The Red Backpack Fund at www.globalgiving.org/redbackpackfund.