HelpMeSee Welcomes Matt Kupec As Vice President Of Development And Marketing

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Nov 19, 2014, 03:07 ET

NEW YORK, Nov. 19, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- HelpMeSee, a global campaign to eliminate blindness caused by treatable cataract, announces that Matt Kupec has been appointed Vice President of Development and Marketing.

Matt Kupec, HelpMeSee VP of Development & Marketing

Kupec, a veteran fundraiser, comes to HelpMeSee from Text2Give, Inc., a company that uses mobile technology to help charities raise money through the mobile channel. Kupec has served the last two years as co-founder and executive chairman of Text2Give, Inc., a start-up company that assists K through 12 schools, universities, charities, and churches with fundraising. With 143 clients, Text2Give is quickly establishing itself as a leader in the mobile giving space.

Before Text2Give, Inc., Kupec served for twenty-one years at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the last 18 as vice chancellor for university advancement. Under his leadership, UNC raised nearly $5 billion. Kupec successfully directed two major fundraising campaigns – the $2.38 billion Campaign for Carolina and the $440 million Bicentennial Campaign. UNC was awarded 12 Council for the Support and Advancement of Education (CASE) Awards for outstanding development performance, more than any other University in America during that time.

Prior to UNC, Kupec served ten years at Hofstra University in Hempstead, NY. As assistant vice president for development and alumni relations, Kupec successfully directed the $32 million "Campaign for Hofstra University."

"We are very pleased to gain the services of such a recognized and successful fundraiser as Matt Kupec to the HelpMeSee team," said Mohan Jacob Thazhathu, president & CEO, HelpMeSee. "We are delighted that he is bringing his expertise, talents, and most importantly his passion to us to achieve our goal of bringing vision to all 20 million people world-wide who suffer from cataract blindness."

"I am thrilled to be joining the HelpMeSee team, led by co-founder and chairman, Jim Ueltschi and Mohan Jacob Thazhathu," said Kupec. "HelpMeSee has an ambitious goal of eliminating cataract blindness around the globe by providing access to treatment to the poorest people on earth. HelpMeSee is using very sophisticated simulation technology and courseware to train thousands of cataract specialists. It is very exciting to be part of such a global health campaign focused on a cure. I have been privileged to lead the fundraising operations at two great universities – the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Hofstra University - HelpMeSee presents a unique challenge and a wonderful opportunity to apply my skills."

Kupec resigned from UNC in 2012 when questions arose about travel expenses. A university audit found expenses for which a sufficient business purpose could not be established. Kupec reimbursed the university for the expenses.

"We did a thorough investigation of the situation at UNC and talked with many people," said Thazhathu. "Ultimately what we found was an unfortunate situation. In the view of a number of people involved and knowledgeable of the matter, Matt's resignation came during a turbulent time at UNC. Circumstances led to mistakes by all parties."

Matt has ringing endorsements from incredibly outstanding individuals from a variety of fields who testify to his character and integrity in successfully leading UNC's extensive advancement office operations. We are confident that through Matt's leadership, HelpMeSee will be able to raise the awareness of the tragedy of untreated cataract blindness and HelpMeSee's campaign to end it. Matt will focus on building a world class organization dedicated to generating strong and abiding relationships with our donors until blindness caused by cataract becomes history."

About HelpMeSee
HelpMeSee (www.HelpMeSee.org) is a New York based international not-for-profit (501 (3) (c) corporation with a global mandate to eliminate cataract blindness endemic in developing countries by training and supporting thousands of cataract specialists to provide high quality, low cost sight restoring surgeries to the poor. It is estimated that 20 million poor people are totally blind due to cataract. HelpMeSee has designed and is now producing virtual reality surgical simulators and training program to be implemented worldwide, adapted from the founders' extensive experience in simulator-based aviation training.

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Contact: HelpMeSee, 1-844-HelpMeSee

SOURCE HelpMeSee