Purple Acts of Kindness

Yahoo!’s Purple Acts of Kindness is a monthly program run by Yahoo! for Good that offers unexpected generous acts to better the community.

Check out some of our not-so-random acts of generosity:

  • Purple Lady: When the Purple Lady of Tiburon's house burned down, Yahoo! bought 250 copies of her book to donate to charity. (November 2009)
  • Urban Sprouts: Inspired by mandatory composting laws in SF, we partnered with Urban Sprouts to build compost systems in schools and to promote composting at home with students and families. (October 2009)
  • Back to School: To help Walt Disney Elementary School in Burbank get ready for the school year, we donated a bunch of necessary school supplies. (September 2009)
  • Supporting Our Troops: We donated a ping pong table to US soldiers in Kuwait who are dealing with 135 degree weather and unbearable sandstorms. (August 2009)
  • One Project at a Time: We funded 5 DonorsChoose classroom projects chosen by Yahoos ranging from a multi-function printer to cooking classes for autistic students located in high poverty neighborhoods in New York. (June - July 2009)
  • Pedal Power: During Bike to Work Month, we bought 8 community bikes from Pedal Revolution and donated them to Delancey Street Foundation to help ex-convicts and ex-addicts get back on their feet. (May 2009)
  • Moving Pictures:In honor of Earth Day, we sent 80 students from San Francisco, CA and Hillsboro, OR to a screening of the Disney film earth. (April 2009)
  • Making A Powerful Noise:We sent 10 underserved high school girls from Los Angeles to a VIP screening of the documentary A Powerful Noise and gave them Flip video cameras to create their own videos. (March 2009)
  • Awarding Purple Hearts:We brought extra cheer to hundreds of people in Los Angeles suffering from devastating illnesses by partnering with Project Angel Food to deliver meals accompanied with purple Valentine's surprises. (February 2009)
  • Inspiring our Youth: Yahoo! sponsored the Freedom Train and bought tickets for 250 youth from East Palo Alto to take a ride to attend inspirational events. (January 2009)
  • Building Bikes with SF 49ers: Yahoo! partnered with the San Francisco 49ers Foundation to help build bikes for low income children. (December 2008)
  • Turkeys for America: We doubled the donations raised to feed hungry families for Turkeys for America's Challenge Cup Winner. (November 2008)
  • Young Pioneer of Purple: Yahoo! honored Becca Robison from Astrotots with a $10,000 grant and a trip to San Francisco to host a science camp for kids. (October 2008)
  • Start Wearing Purple Shoes: In partnership with My New Red Shoes, Yahoo! outfitted 50 homeless children to go back to school with purple Converse shoes. (September 2008)
  • Local Food for Good: Yahoo! partnered with Quesada Gardens and MyFarm to help install backyard food-producing gardens in Bayview. (July-August 2008)
  • Pay It Forward: We asked 100 of our employees to pay it forward with Commuter Checks for their friends and family to encourage more people to take public transportation. (June 2008)
  • Two Wheels Good: Yahoo! surprised Bike to Work Day cyclists with free bike tune-ups at a Bay Area energizer st ation. (May 2008)
  • Shop Green: We gave Carrotmobbers $50 vouchers to help a local SF company make eco-friendly upgrades. Carrotmob.org organizes consumers to make purchases that give financial rewards to those companies who agree to make environmentally-friendly choices. (April 2008)
  • Girl Power: In honor of Women's History Months, Yahoo! helped eight teenage girls from Girls for a Change bring to life a social c hange video project by providing them with video equipment as well as a VIP meeting with Yahoo!'s broadcast communications team. (March 2008)
  • Real History: Yahoo! celebrated Black History Month by challenging students at Hawthorne High School in Los Angeles to "Tell Hist ory As It Is" by submitting creative writing pieces about untold stories of African American heroes. The winner received a new lap-top, and the two runners-up received Flip video cameras. (F ebruary 2008)
  • Keeping the Dream Alive: This year, to celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Yahoo! partnered with three local businesses to give away baked goods and handmade African-inspired goodies at stops along the Freedom Train. (January 2008)

Want more inspiration? Visit the Purple Acts of Kindness Archive.