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T-Mobile wants to keep the giving theme going this holiday season

T-Mobile is matching the value of donated phones and tablets to benefit charity

As the holiday season approaches, so too does the most generous time of year. On November 28, generous and socially minded companies and individuals the world over participated in #GivingTuesday, a global day of giving. And to help everyone give just a little more, T-Mobile, set aside $2 million to be donated to nonprofits selected by its users. But while the giving day has come and gone, T-Mobile is continuing in the spirit of generosity, and is now encouraging folks to recycle their old phones and tablets at local T-Mobile stores, where all donations will be matched.

From December 1 to the end of the year, folks who recycle phones or tablets will have their impact doubled, as the Un-carrier promises to match the recycled value of donated devices, and send the proceeds to Feeding America and Team Rubicon.

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The Bellevue, Washington-based carrier is pledging a minimum matching donation of $1,000,000 to be split equally between the two charities, said to be enough to buy five million meals and deploy 5,000 veterans to serve in disaster-afflicted areas.

This initiative builds off of #GivingTuesday 2017, when T-Mobile leveraged its perennially popular T-Mobile Tuesdays app to give customers $2 not to spend at Dunkin Donuts, Panda Express, or one of the other retailers often found on the platform, but rather to donate. Folks with the T-Mobile Tuesdays app were able to give that money to one of four charities — the American Red Cross, Boys & Girls Club of America, Feeding America, or Team Rubicon.

T-Mobile’s offer wasn’t limited to T-Mobile customers. In fact, anytime anyone tweeted #GivingTWOgether on November 28, the Bellevue, Washington-based carrier pledged to donate yet another $2 to be split evenly among each of the four charities, up to $100,000. And those part of the T-Mobile payroll found an extra $28 in their Giving Accounts on the morning of November 28 that could be donated to any charity.

“This has been a tough year for so many, and on this #GivingTuesday, you get to give back the way that matters most to you,” said John Legere, president and CEO of T-Mobile.

So what did your $2 donation do? If you selected the Boys & Girls Club of America, your generosity will help provide 40 minutes of homework support to after-school youth. Meanwhile, $2 given to the American Red Cross will result in a comfort kit to someone impacted by a disaster, whereas a donation to Feeding America promises to allow food to be distributed to a family in need. And finally, Team Rubicon will use the donations that it receives to give clean water filtration kits to families affected by a natural disaster.

Update: T-Mobile promises to match the value of donated phones and tablets to benefit Feeding America and Team Rubicon. 

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