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SOUTH BRUNSWICK: Local charity needs your vote

by Nicole Cosentino, Special writer
   A local charity helping young girls in third world countries needs your help to get up to $1 million in grant money from NBC.
   South Brunswick High School graduate Tammy Tibbetts founded the volunteer organization called She’s The First in November 2009. According to its founder, the nonprofit works to educate girls around the world so they can be the first in their families to graduate from high school.
   ”I believe, first and foremost, that education should be universal,” Ms. Tibbetts said. “I believe in the power of youth to make a huge difference in the world, using the power of their social networks. I also believe we can positively influence our local communities while making a global impact.”
   She’s The First has eight international partners – five in Africa (namely, Tanzania, Uganda, Kenya, South Sudan, and Ethiopia) and the other three in India, Nepal, and Guatemala.
   The nonprofits past successful fundraisers include a tie-dye cupcake bake sale at South Brunswick’s very own high school, a concert in New York City called “GIRLS WHO ROCK,” and a poetry reading.
   Now, She’s The First needs your help. It is nominated as a competitor in the “Educators and Mentors” category of the NBC American Giving Awards.
   ”The charities receiving the most votes in each of the five categories will receive grants, valued from $125,000 to $1,000,000, to further their mission,” Ms. Tibbetts said. Voting is open until Dec. 4.
   Ms. Tibbetts already knows what She’s The First would do if it were to win.
   ”We will sponsor hundreds of more girls, enabling them to break the cycle of poverty in their families, and we’ll grow our (U.S.) leadership programs too. We have 40 campus chapters across the U.S. now, and we also mentor lower-income students in NYC who will be first in their families to go to college,” she said.
   ”There is something so universal about the desire to break barriers, by furthering one’s education that’s what unites the girls of central Jersey with those in Guatemala or India. The future is in our hands and technology affords us the opportunity to reach out and collaborate on solutions and deeper understanding for a better world.”
   Thanks to that technology, voting is simple – Facebook users can scan the electronic bar code that accompanies this article with a smartphone or go to http://bit.ly/VoteShestheFirst. Chase banking customers can vote twice at http://www.chase.com/chasegiving.