Seeking People Who Use Facebook to Cast Votes to bring $25,000 to Communities

BLOOMINGTON, Ill., April 27, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Communities across the United States and Canada answered the call from State Farm for Causes that would make a difference in their neighborhood. Now it is up to people who use Facebook to help bring $25,000 to their communities by voting for the top 40 Causes that mean the most to them via the State Farm® Facebook Page, http://www.facebook.com/#!/statefarm.

From April 27 through May 17, the Facebook community is encouraged to visit the Cause An Effect app and vote for their favorite Cause.  People can search by Cause name, location or topic, and can vote up to 10 times per day. The 40 Causes that receive the most votes will each receive a $25,000 grant to help build safer, stronger, better educated communities.

"The overwhelming number of submissions shows the level of caring, commitment and desire within our communities to come together and solve local issues," said Kellie Clapper, Assistant Vice President of Community Relations for State Farm. "Now we're challenging communities to take it to the next level; to get behind their Causes and vote."

State Farm received 3,000 Causes submissions through Cause An Effect, a youth-led, crowd-sourced philanthropic initiative that relies on local, non-profit organizations to create solutions to community issues identified by people who use Facebook. Every state, district and province in the United States and Canada that were eligible to participate was represented by a Cause within the categories of education, safety and community development.

The State Farm Youth Advisory Board, a diverse group of 30 students who are passionate about social responsibility, reviewed the Cause submissions and helped State Farm select the top 100 finalists. State Farm then identified and paired nonprofits with each Cause.

The 40 Causes that receive the most votes will be announced on May 22, and a $25,000 grant will be awarded to the affiliated nonprofits. These nonprofits will create and execute a plan to address the Cause; the Cause submitters can be as involved as they choose to be in this process.

For a complete list of the top 100 Causes or for more information about Cause An Effect, visit the State Farm Facebook Page (http://www.facebook.com/#!/statefarm) or search #causeaneffect on Twitter.

About State Farm®:
State Farm and its affiliates are the largest provider of car insurance in the U.S. and a leading insurer in Canada. In addition to providing auto insurance quotes, their 17,800 agents and more than 65,000 employees serve 81 million policies and accounts – more than 79 million auto, home, life and health policies in the United States and Canada, and nearly 2 million bank accounts. Commercial auto insurance, along with coverage for renters, business owners, boats and motorcycles, is also available. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company is the parent of the State Farm family of companies. State Farm is ranked No. 37 on the Fortune 500 list of largest companies. For more information, please visit http://www.statefarm.com or in Canada http://www.statefarm.ca.

About the Youth Advisory Board
The Youth Advisory Board is comprised of 30 students, ages 17-20, from across the United States and Canada who serve a two-year term. Their directive is to implement a $5 million-a-year signature service-learning initiative to address issues important to youth and communities. The Board is completely autonomous and youth-driven, and funds projects focused on issues selected by the board that impact youth. It consists of a diverse group of full-time students at high schools and universities. Each member commits about 15 hours a month to the Board and participates in three face-to-face meetings per calendar year. The Board will fund the 40 grants awarded through the Cause An Effect program with a portion of its $5 million funding in 2012. For more information on the Youth Advisory Board, visit www.statefarmYouth Advisory Board.com.

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SOURCE State Farm