Chicago Rewia #115

chicagorewia.com #28 (115) • 10 - 16 LIPIEC 2015 | 13
MoNIKA WIeLA
Continued from page 12
of these boxes get thrown away into
the trash and not recycled! Also, each
household has an average of $7,000
of unused items that can be donated.
What’s more is that I discovered one
of the biggest issues facing charities
all across the country: a lack of donations.
These days, people don’t have
time to drive to a charity or shelter
to drop off donated goods, or maybe
they feel intimidated by it. Simple logistics
prevent them from giving back
in a huge way.
When I started Give Back Box®,
I approached Goodwill International
charities to see if they would be open
to receiving our donations, and they
welcomed our support. Once a person
sends ships their box, it goes to Goodwill’s
closest participating location.
The cost of shipment is covered through
fundraising and monetary donations
on our website, and we are able
to continue the prepaid shipping label
model at no cost to the consumers.
What’s wonderful is that you are able
to print a tax deduction from straight
from GiveBackBack.com as well.
Thankfully, I have been able to share
the concept of Give Back Box with
Technori Pitch, TEDx, NBC Today
Show, Forbes, and many more. My vision
is to give customers the ability to
decide, “Do I want to throw this box
away, or do I want to donate and make
a difference?” The purpose of Give
Back Box is to provide an effortless
and convenient method of donating
unwanted and used household items
directly to charities to aid them in carrying
out their mission of critical work
to help the billions of people in need.
Give Back Box will not only enable
charities to help people in need through
giving cardboard boxes a second
life and recycling them, but it will also
keep them away from landfills and improve
our environment.
In December of 2014, NewEgg.com
became the first online retailer in the
United States that secured a message
on each box about donating to Give
Back Box. We are also grateful to work
with UPS, Overstock.com, Loft.com,
and as of Spring 2015, we will be announcing
another major online retailer
that will be partnering with us to
make a difference.
RM: Were there any people that inspired
you along the way?
MW: I met my mentor Meir Ezra when
I was starting up Give Back Box. He
helped me since beginning, came to
my first meetings, and his family has
always been so supportive of my initiatives.
Meir taught me how to take
a passion and make a business of it.
Sometimes we have a dream or passion…
Shoes was my hobby, but now
with Give Back Box, I know how to
measure performance, look at the business
model and create great results.
This was an education that I really never
had. I was lacking how to organize
the business, and how to go from a
dream to a major company. With my
shoe company, I did it all on my own.
You have to remember that there are
people around you that want to help
you. It’s good when you’re successful
on your own, but you are only really
fulfilled when you help others. Now
I can understand this. You can help
people through so many ways. If you
can do something better than someone
else, use that knowledge and help
them build their skills. Now I am able
to share that knowledge too, and it’s
the best feeling ever!
RM: How do you envision the future
of Give Back Box?
MW: BIG. I want to change the world,
one Give Back Box at a time. My goal
is to become a global company and
secure every box in the world with a
Give Back Box stamp next to the recycling
symbol. Imagine if we were
able to fill all 12 million shipments
per day with donations to charities in
need. How many people can we feed,
clothe, educate? With its motto of ‘No
Box Left Behind’, Give Back Box aims
to perpetuate a paradigm shift in the
shopping arena, particularly online,
by enabling people to reuse their shipping
box to generate charitable donation
on a massive scale. Now giving
back becomes a normal part of your
shopping experience.
A BRIeF HISToRy
Continued from page 11
ca (PRCUA), the oldest Polish American
fraternal organization, headquartered
in Chicago. Originally
known as the Museum and Archives
of the PRCUA, it was formally
re-incorporated in 1959 as The Polish
Museum of America.
The first motion to establish the
Polish Museum was introduced in
1928 at the 39th PRCUA Convention.
In 1931, an unrelated museum
of Polish immigration material was
lost in a fire at Alliance College in
Cambridge Springs, PA. Many voices
called for the creation of a new
Polish American museum, and the
idea was again proposed at the 40th
PRCUA Convention that same year.
By 1934, discussions for establishing
a historical society charged with processing
the recently deposited archives
of the Wydzial Narodowy Polski
(Polish National Committee) were
finalized. Between its founding and
public opening, the Museum began
to amass a noteworthy collection of
art, artifacts, and archives.
P R C U A B U I L D I N G H O U S I N G
T H E M U S E U M 1 9 3 0 S
In its 80 years, the PMA has acquired
unique collections representing
the history of American Poles, and
of Poland. Early on, the PMA appealed
to Polonia to send materials
it saw worthy of representing their
community. With the swell of Polish
M I E C Z Y S L AW H A I M A N ,
F I R S T M U S E U M C U R AT O R
immigrants in the late 1800's and
early 1900s, these recent Americans
wanted their history remembered.
With the outbreak of World War
II, the PMA mission changed. With
the destruction of Europe, materials
from the homeland began to disappear.
Acquisition was spurred even
further; items were actively obtained
by the PMA that would have
otherwise been destroyed or dispersed
under the Nazi and Soviet regimes.
For example, the Polish Pavilion
collection from the 1939 New
York World Fair first arrived at the
PMA due to these drastic circumstances.
With Poland under Nazi occupation,
the art and artifacts could
not be returned. Through official
agreements with the Polish government
in exile, the PMA purchased
many artifacts and others were received
as gifts, and further items were
held on deposit for Poland, as well
as for private individuals. The assembly
of items constitutes a most
varied collection.
Throughout its existence, the
PMA strives to celebrate the story
of Poland and Polish Americans
to all of its visitors. In addition to
the Library and Archives, the Museum
presents its permanent collections.
Highlights include: personal
and professional mementos of
Ignacy Jan Paderewski, statesman
and pianist (1860-1941), the IJ Paderewski
Room, renovated in 2009;
Inter-War paintings and sculptures
in the Stephen and Elizabeth
Ann Kusmierczak Art Gallery, renovated
in 2011; and art and artifacts
from the Polish Pavilion at the 1939
New York World Fair, displayed in
the Sabina P. Logisz Great Hall, and
throughout the PMA. Temporary
exhibits of various art and historical
themes round out visitor experiences,
creating an engaging space
to learn about the Polish American
past and present.
www.PolishMuseumofamerica.org