A note from
World Vision president
Rich Stearns

Dear Friends,

You may be familiar with one of Mark Twain's observations, "Clothes make the man." But do you know the rest of what the American humorist had to say? He followed with "Naked people have little or no influence on society."

If there's one thing that World Vision has attempted to do over the course of its 60-plus years, it's to influence society. We serve alongside the poor, working to tackle the causes of poverty and injustice. We serve alongside the not-so-poor who want to be part of building a better world. We've learned that poverty isn't the result of scarcity. At a time when the world produces plenty, poverty is the result of choices society makes and can undo. We want to influence those choices. So I guess it's about time we got some clothes.

Made for Good, a leader in social responsibility product development and a long-time World Vision supporter, was inspired by the work of World Vision to create a new line of apparel that will enable anyone who shares our mission and calling to wear their hearts on their sleeves. In addition, proceeds from every sale of GIVEN apparel will fund clean water, nutritious food, health services and more in communities around the world.

The biggest problem we confront is not systemic poverty. We know how to address that. Our challenge is to overcome apathy and engage people in this work. Our prayer is that GIVEN will be another way to connect with people and that you, too, will be GIVEN to serve and to share the message and the mission with others.

Yours in His service,

Rich Stearns

President, World Vision