Jewelry for a Cause

Caliber Collection (formerly Jewelry for a Cause)^[1] is an online company that was founded by Jessica Pollack Mindich, an American jewelry designer, in December 2008.^[2]

Founder and CEO of the Caliber Collection, formerly known as Jewelry for a Cause.

History

In 2000, Mindich stepped down from her position as General Counsel at an internet company to raise a family.^[3] With both her children in school years later, Mindich found herself desperate to get back to work. She started looking for a job based on the notion of being able to do something important to her, a lesson learned from her philanthropic parents.^[4] In 2008, she launched Jewelry for a Cause, with the idea of making and selling jewelry to raise money for both foreign and domestic causes.^[5]

Jewelry for a Cause became popular with public and private schools, offering an alternative to the standard school rings and sweatshirts, while also offering an additional fundraising tool next to candy bars^[6] and wrapping paper. Mindich's organization has raised money for more than 300 schools and charities.^[7]

Mindich attended a conference in December 2011, where the Mayor of Newark (NJ) Cory Booker,^[8] was discussing the illegal gun violence affecting his city.^[9] Mindich spoke with Mr. Booker, who had attended Yale Law School with Mindich's husband, about Newark's gun buyback program.^[8] Together, they drew a connection to her work designing jewelry as a fundraising tool and the partnership began between the city and police department of Newark and Jewelry for a Cause.^[10] In 2012, Mindich launched the Caliber Collection jewelry line two weeks before the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Newtown, CT.^[11]

Starting with melting metals from guns that had been confiscated in old cases, the bracelets are stamped with a serial number that corresponds with one of the guns taken off the streets by the Newark Police Department. The bracelet shape is oval, representing the trigger cage of a gun.^[12] 20% of the proceeds from each purchase fund a Gun buyback program in the future.^[13]

In 2015, Mindich rebranded Jewelry for a Cause to the Caliber Collection.^[14]

Newark

Gun Buyback

The weekend of April 27, 2013, the city of Newark, NJ the Newark Police Department^[15] and Jewelry for a Cause hosted a gun buyback. Police recovered 210 weapons, including eight assault rifles. The weekend event was fully funded by Mindich's company by providing $60,000, from the sales of the Caliber Collection bracelets, in total to the cause.^[16]

San Francisco

Captain Michael Perry, of the Pittsburg Police Department in California, shipped Mindich disabled guns from the department's buyback program in 2013^[17] to create the Caliber San Francisco jewelry line. A privately funded buyback^[18] had collected 291 weapons, including assault rifles, handguns, shotguns and rifles.^[19] "San Francisco" is stamped on the inside of the bracelet to represent the Bay area as a whole. A portion of the sales goes towards future gun buybacks in Pittsburg, California.^[20]

Other Products

Talismans

The Talisman necklace line^[21] from the web-based company^[6] includes a charm featuring a Buddha, peace sign and daisy to name a few, where part of the sales are given to online charity www.donorschoose.org.^[21] Other items from this line donate to many other organizations, including the American Heart Association^[7] and the American Red Cross Japanese Earthquake and Pacific Tsunami Disaster Relief Efforts.^[13]

In Gratitude

The In Gratitude necklace line is made from recycled newspaper, barkcloth and natural plant dye^[22] by local artisans in Uganda.^[23] The purchase of any necklace from this line helps the women of Uganda create a sustainable source of income for their families and community.^[22]

References

External links

• Jewelry for a Cause website
• Jewelry for a Cause blog