BottleDrop Announces Fundraising Campaign to Support Mercy Corps’ Ukraine Relief Efforts
The BottleDrop Emergency Fund will match $25,000 of OR 10-cent container and BottleDrop account donations to support Ukrainians in crisis
Clackamas, Ore. -- The Oregon Beverage Recycling Cooperative (OBRC), which operates the BottleDrop network, announced today that it is engaging its Emergency Fund to support humanitarian relief services being provided to Ukrainians through the Portland-based nonprofit, Mercy Corps. Mercy Corps is a global crisis response and humanitarian organization operating in over 40 countries, and has rapidly deployed teams to help people in Ukraine, Poland, and Romania who have been displaced by the conflict in Ukraine.
Between now and April 10, BottleDrop is encouraging its over 810,000 Green Bag account holders to make donations from their BottleDrop accounts to support Mercy Corps’ Ukraine relief efforts, and will be matching those donations with a $25,000 contribution from the OBRC Emergency Fund. BottleDrop account holders can direct their donations by visiting BottleDrop.com/Ukraine and logging in to their accounts.
Oregonians can also donate OR 10-cent redeemable cans and bottles directly to this effort (and have their funds matched) by taking them to any BottleDrop Redemption Center and letting staff on-site know they would like to donate them to Mercy Corps’ Ukraine relief efforts.
“A devastating catastrophe is unfolding in Ukraine and in the region, costing and threatening lives and livelihoods, driving families apart and causing mass displacement. We are grateful for the immense generosity we’re seeing from people globally and here in our hometown community and across the State of Oregon to support our efforts to help Ukrainians in urgent need of assistance” said Lynn Hector, Director of Communications at Mercy Corps.
Over three million people have already fled Ukraine since February 24, leaving their homes, possessions, and livelihoods behind, making this the fastest growing refugee crisis in Europe since World War II. The United Nations estimates that 10 million Ukrainians – a quarter of their population – could be displaces both inside and outside of the country.
“We are devastated by the tragedy in Ukraine, and we wanted to find a way to engage the BottleDrop network and help Ukrainians seeking safety. Oregonians routinely put their bottles and cans to great use supporting nonprofits and community organizations. Now we have a chance to use our BottleDrop funds and redeemable containers to help our distant neighbors in Ukraine during this horrible crisis,” said Eric Chambers, director of external relations at OBRC.
About OBRC
The Oregon Beverage Recycling Cooperative (OBRC) is the industry steward of Oregon’s nationally recognized beverage container redemption system. Headquartered in Clackamas, OR, OBRC is a statewide not-for-profit cooperative, formed by the beverage industry. OBRC helps keep Oregon beautiful by providing outstanding services to partners, distributors, retailers and the public for the recovery, reuse and recycling of beverage containers. Through OBRC’s BottleDrop Redemption Centers and container pickup service for more than 2,500 retail partners, the co-op recycles around 2 billion beverage containers annually, protecting the Oregon we love, supporting the causes we cherish and inspiring innovation beyond our borders – all without a single penny of state funding. To learn more, visit BottleDrop.com or OBRC.com.
About Mercy Corps
Mercy Corps is a global humanitarian organization with over 5,400 team members working across 40 countries. Headquartered in Portland, Mercy Corps works globally to create a world where everyone can prosper, supporting those affected by crisis, disaster, poverty, and climate change, and working alongside communities, local governments, forward-thinking corporations and social entrepreneurs to meet urgent needs and develop long-term solutions to make lasting change possible. To learn more, visit mercycorps.org.