Scroll through The Chive on any given day and you’re bound to see cute animals stirring up trouble, women in bikinis, and sitcom quote and Twitter hashtag slideshows. But dig a little deeper into the site and you’ll also find Chive Charities, stories about individuals battling life-altering personal challenges — including illness, trauma, and rare diseases.
“The Chive is viral videos, funny photos, good looking women is definitely a part of it,” says Brian Mercedes, Chive Charities executive director. “There’s a heart to The Chive, and Chive Charities is a big part of what that is.”
After starting the Austin-based website, TheChive.com, in 2008, John and Leo Resig noticed that visitors were starting to use the site in a different way. “A lot of what you see on the website is submissions from users and fans of the site and as it began to grow they started getting not just funny photos and beautiful art, they actually started to get people reaching out for help,” Mercedes says.
When help was called for, The Chive community was quick to respond, soon doubling the goals of those seeking crowdfunding, and prompting the Resigs to create a platform to help their audience do what they were already wanting to do – donate...
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