Hollywood Stars Support Breast Cancer Awareness Month Through New Film “FIVE”

Written by Marketing Intern Alejandra Quinones


“Direct your power. YOU have the power to stop breast cancer” is the slogan of the new Lifetime Original film “Five”.  Since 1994, Lifetime Television has been promoting awareness and activism around the issue of breast cancer. They have been dedicated to informing their viewers of the severity of breast cancer, and this year is no different. On October 10th, they presented the film “Five”, an anthology of five interrelated stories that depicts the effects breast cancer can have not only on the victim, but on everyone in their life as well.


The film has top tier talent both in front of and behind the camera. Jennifer Aniston, Patty Jenkins, Alicia Keys, Demi Moore and Penelope Spheeris each directed one of the films. The cast of the film has some acclaimed actors that include, Patricia Clarkson, Rosario Dawson and Jeanne Tripplehorn. The producers of the film include Aniston and Kristin Hahn, Marta Kauffman and Paula Wagner.


The films’ inception began when Susan G. Komen for the Cure approached producer Kristin Hahn with the idea of a story that mixes the tragedy of breast cancer with the humor of life. The idea is to inform how tragic this cancer is, and to inspire hope that we have the power to find a cure. From there, the production team gathered writers to brainstorm ideas and decided the story would be most effective it was split into segments. Lifetime found the film so appealing, they signed on to it as soon as possible.


The film has garnered positive reviews, all saying that though the subject matter is wrenching, the tone is not only an emotional uplift, but a reminder that everyone has the power to support finding a cure.


“Five” will be playing on Lifetime all through Breast Cancer Awareness month, but if you miss it, you can also be catch it online at mylifetime.com

Celebrities Give Back: George Clooney and Ocean’s 11 cast members founded “Not On Our Watch”

 Written by Marketing Intern Candace Nixon


George Clooney is best known for his charming character in movies rather than his commitment to a number of charitable causes. Clooney’s most personal charity work might be Not On Our Watch, which he founded with his Ocean’s 11 co-stars Don Cheadle, Matt Damon, and Brad Pitt, as well as producers Jerry Weintraub and David Pressman.


Their mission is to stop mass atrocities and give a voice to their victims.  This charity has raised millions to generate lifesaving humanitarian assistance and protection for the vulnerable, marginalized and displaced. Clooney has been remarkably hands-on with this charity, traveling all the way to Africa to personally visit with the victims of rape, abuse, and torture. 


Clooney is involved in many other charities as well, including; ONE Campaign, serving on the Board of Trustees for the United Way, ENOUGH Project, Whatever It Takes, and has even donated a significant amount to the Actors Fund which helped those struggling during the writers’ strike.

Tennis Champs Roger Federer, Serena Williams, Vera Zvonareva and Novak Djokovic Give Back

Written by Marketing Intern Victoria Hanson

Tennis has changed drastically over the years.  At first opponents had rivalry’s, but now, opponents have the utmost respect for each other. Not only do competitors get along, they give back.

 Roger Federer started a foundation that works to build schools in Africa. Serena Williams also works to build schools in Africa and Vera Zvonareva is persistent in raising awareness of Rett Syndrome, a nervous system disorder causing mostly girls to have developmental reversals.

Also, during the US Open, the world’s number one player, Novak Djokovic, was appointed by UNICEF to be an ambassador for Serbia where he advocated for education for children from disadvantaged backgrounds.  Since only one in ten low-income children attend pre-school, it is significant that Djokovic and others bring change. 

However, even though players are giving back on a large scale, anyone can give back on a smaller scale.  There are many resources to get involved, whether it is through volunteering or being the director of a foundation, there is a niche for everyone. 

Uptown Liz not only allows opportunities for companies to give back through showcasing their products whose proceeds go to charitable causes, it allows open participation in buying products from its online marketplace.

For information about volunteering in your neighborhood please visit http://www.volunteermatch.org/

Matt Damon Gives Back through Charity Water Bottle

 Written by Marketing Intern Alejandra Quinones

Matt Damon has quite the resume. Not only is he an Oscar winner for his screenplay “Good Will Hunting”, but he has been in countless notable films spanning all genres. Though most know him for his work in Hollywood, Damon has as notable Humanitarian resume as he does in acting. He is one of the founders of Not On Our Watch, an organization that focuses on global attention and resource to stop and prevent disasters such as in Darfur. He also supports the ONE campaign, is an ambassador for OneXOne and a spokesperson for Feeding America.

Damon co-founded Water.org, a charity whose mission is “challenging the traditional approach to helping people in developing countries with inadequate water supplies.” They raise funds to battle the issue of inadequate water supplies, one community at a time. Water.org wishes to inspire the public to act with Donors (to provide consistent financial resources), staff and volunteers (to seek innovative and efficient solutions to meeting to global water supply needs of today and tomorrow), people in need of safe water (to take the lead in meeting their own needs). Together, the people that take part in these acts form the “water partnership” that will further the goals of Water.org and eventually supply adequate water everywhere.

This week, Matt Damon and Water.org are launching a water bottle campaign to help some of the 884 million people who lack access to clean water. The cause is close to the actors heart, “I think what resonates with me most is when you see people living without clean water and they’re forced to scavenge for water and basically use up all of their time just doing that. You realize that they’re in such a crippling cycle of poverty; it’s just a death spin that they can’t possibly get out of,” said Damon in an interview aboutWater.org’s campaign.

With the purchase of each limited-edition CamelBak Groove reusable watter bottle, $10 will go directly to Water.org. The bottles are available at http://water.org/ and you can spread the word about the campaign by liking “One Bottle’s Promise” on Facebook.

Malaga Bank and Sweepstakes Winner Give Back

Written by Marketing Intern Candace Nixon


In Torrance, California, Mr. Melvyn Frumes was just named the winner of the Malaga Bank $5K Sweepstakes.  The bank-sponsored sweepstakes ran from July 1 through September 30, 2011.  The goal of the sweepstakes came in two parts.  The first was to give back to an individual client, and the second was to give back to the community.  What was rare about this give-away was that half of the money given to the winner was donated to the charity of his choice.

Frumes selected Pediatric Therapy Network (PTN), a Torrance-based organization founded in 1996 by a handful of therapists, parents and volunteers. They envisioned an organization that would provide the community with quality therapy, research and education to foster the best possible outcomes for children with special needs.  With only 5,000 square feet of space to provide treatment, the dedicated group of therapists used equipment and materials donated or purchased at yard sales.  PTN provides over 100,000 hours of therapy each year, their goal being to meet all growing needs of the many children across Southern California.

Stephen Sondheim Gives Back for the Friends in Deed Charity Treasure Hunt

Written by Marketing Intern Victoria Hanson

Composer Stephen Sondheim lent his talents by creating clues for the Friends in Deed charity treasure hunt, Monday October 3, 2011 at the American Museum of Natural History.  Friends in Deed, a non-profit crisis center for life-threatening illness, wanted to celebrate their 20th anniversary in a unique way sending guests through the Primitive Mammals room, the Ornithischian Dinosaurs room and the Saurischain Dinosaurs room, answering clues and hoping to be the first to find the ultimate treasure. 

Among the 300 guests in attendance including Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick, 23 teams were created consisting of 12 persons.  Each participant was given a large brown envelope sealed with wax containing 12 clues on six cards.  Participants began the hunt at precisely 7:30 p.m., and had to use the clue cards to decipher which creature was being named through looking at descriptions of the animal or through looking at images of a creature’s fossils. 

These words were broken down and needed to be rearranged to uncover the final clue, “Listen to the legend of the dinosaur in the mammal theatre.”  The only advice participants received from Sondheim can be summed up in allowing for serendipity, not drawing attention when finding a clue and not using Google.  Clark Winter, an artist from Manhattan explained the task saying, “We’ve been given a list of clues and we’re trying to figure out how to attach these clues to certain dinosaurs.” 

The winners each received a Motorola Droid and a weekend getaway to a hotel in Saugerties, N.Y.  Although a seat to the event cost $1,500, each person received a three course dinner, a concert by Melissa Errico, and Raúl Esparza, and a chance to participate in a once in a lifetime charity event. 

Uptown Liz is Spreading the Gift of Giving through Facebook!

Written by Marketing Intern Alejandra Quinones 


Uptown Liz is offering a “charitable” way to give back during the holidays. It’s a contest that will be held on Facebook for all our lucky followers. 

Here’s how it works:  we will post one question a day on the Uptown Liz Facebook page, regarding a variety of topics. Each trivia question will have only one correct answer, so the winner will be the first person to answer correctly.  For each holiday question, the first person to answer wins!

Uptown Liz will donate to a charity every time there is a winner AND the winner gets a prize from us too!

Each winner will need to e-mail their name, address and phone number to info@uptownliz.com in order for their prizes to be sent.  All contact information the winner provides will only be used for the contest and will not be added to any mailing lists.

 All prizes will be sent at the end of the contest.

 Spread the gift of giving with Uptown Liz!