UF alumni Cameron MacMillan and Joey Sasvari plan to transform charity work, one iPhone at a time.
Their company, New Charity Era, brings together charity and social gaming. The company’s first product, an iPhone application entitled “Raise the Village,” will be available at the end of October or early November.
The application combines the structure of “FarmVille” with the business model of Toms shoes, a company that donates a pair of shoes to underprivileged children for every pair purchased.
“‘FarmVille’ is a popular game, and they make tons and tons of revenue through the purchase of virtual items,” Sasvari said. “In this game, you have a full village that you have to take care of, and all the items that you buy for your villagers in the game, we buy in real life.”
Users can purchase a variety of necessities, including food, water, clothing and medical supplies. The virtual purchases will be donated to the 1,400 people living in Kapir Atiira, Uganda.
After the supplies are distributed, users will be able to see photos of the delivery that will show the impact of their donations.
“People are sick of donating money and not seeing where it goes,” MacMillan said. “We want [the game] to be a portal for people to give. We want people to feel like they traveled to Africa and handed these gifts off themselves.”
The pair found the village with the help of Biko Evarist, a fellow UF alumnus and Uganda resident, who will oversee the deliveries.
In March, MacMillan and Sasvari traveled to Uganda where their idea to reform charity became a reality.
The company’s website is www.raisethevillage.com.
Editor's note 9/21/10: The original article incorrectly spelled Evarist's name. It's Biko Evarist, not Dike Evarist.
