At AOL, we are in the business of helping people. We bring this value to life each and every day through our work with AOL Impact, a platform that has shined a light on hundreds of non-profits and the advertisers that support them. Much like our advertising offerings, AOL Impact uses our best-in-class assets and brands to inform, entertain and connect our audiences - in this case with charities. Based on the overwhelming feedback we receive internally about the AOL Impact program, we decided to let our employees get involved and tell US what non-profits we should feature. The result was our first-ever employee cause contest, and we're excited to share the results with you!

Due to an overwhelming amount of contest submissions, we decided it was too difficult to choose just one winner, so we opened it up to three! Our team of panelists judged based on the employee's personal connection, level of commitment, and expected future commitment to the charity. Our judges also considered the overall impact that the $5,000 grant will have on the submitted organization. The winners will each be awarded a $5,000 grant in their name to be given to their organizations in addition to pro bono advertising including a Daily Impact unit and blogging opportunities on Huffington Post Impact.

We're thrilled to announce our AOL all-stars:

Venus Bivins Johnson
Sales Strategy, Chicago
Hope Restored
Venus passionately supports and volunteers with Hope Restored, whose mission is to restore hope in Haiti by building a partnership with the members of a small community in Haiti in order to see food, education, and medical care brought enabling them to rise from a culture of desperation to one of hope.


Nelson D'Cruz
AOL Site Engineer, India
Riya Foundation
Nelson is part of a team, out of the AOL India office, who created the Riya Foundation to address the special needs of individuals with disabilities. Nelson looks forward to continuing his work with the organization, and seeing it expand to accommodate even more disabled children.



Matt Blank
EU Search Designer, London
Radio Northwick Park
Matt is the Chairman for the charity, Radio Northwick Park, which is a hospital radio station, based in North London, UK. Matt has dedicated the past 12 years of his life working for and supporting this charity whose mission is to provide care, entertainment, and company to those in need.