Today we’d like to introduce you to Andrew Ydoyaga.
Hi Andrew, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
During my senior year of high school at Richland College’s Collegiate High School, we were asked to do a community project around the holiday season. I noticed that I had a bunch of gift cards with low balances and was trying to figure out what to do with them. This is where the concept of GiftCards4Change started. Why can’t we use these small balances to give back to people in need? As I started to research the idea, I learned that there is more than $8 billion a year in unused cards.
So, with the help of my parents that are in education and IT, I worked to design a web site and created the first 501c3 to take unused giftcards and give them to non-profits all over the United States. The charity formed in 2016 and is still in process today. We are a small non-profit that is family run with all of the proceeds going to charity with the majority of funds going to those in need.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Our main struggle is that we all have full-time jobs, so all of the proceeds can go to charity. We work to fund our passion and to give to those in need. Also, our greatest challenge has been people or organizations trying to replicate our site. So, be careful of websites ending in .com instead of .org as they may not be legitimate non-profits. Giftcards4change.org has been in business for 10 years now.
The other challenge is that we are not always fast moving as it can take a while to process donations under $1 with the virtual terminals and fees being $.04 per transaction. But, we work through it by combining the donations over time. It is easier when the donations are more than $1.00.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I am currently completing my Master’s degree in History and hope to become a teacher. Service and giving back to others is part of who I am and feeds into my charity. I am most proud of how I am able to help others. Giving to those in need related to food insecurity, education, homelessness and other initiatives is so rewarding and what drives me to give back. Being a professor and teaching others about our past is another way that I can give back, and support the charity for the long term. We do not draw any income off of GiftCards4Change.org, so we find other ways to keep the charity running.
We’d love to hear about how you think about risk taking?
We like to use the term “responsible risk taking” when it comes to decisions. We take a risk on charities in need all of the time or a special group. The question is how are we or they giving back to others? Sometimes you have to take a leap of faith to help others in need or to grow, and simply doing the right thing helps us to make the right decisions. In this approach, you can take the ethical path, which is a responsible risk.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.giftcards4change.org
Image Credits
Damien Ydoyaga providing food for a no-kill animal shelter, thanks to an anonymous donor.
Shannon Ydoyaga doing a toy drive and giving to an elementary school in Corpus Christi, Texas following the hurricane to rebuild their garden.
Andrew Ydoyaga is behind the camera.
