Stephen Colbert vs. Volunteering: The Great Ice Cream Challenge

I think we can all agree that NYC is one of the best cities to hold a conference. Why? Well, the street vendors, of course. Three months later, I am still grateful to NCVS (the National Conference on Volunteering and Service) for giving me the excuse to indulge in a plethora of delightfully terrible food options: shwarma, falafal and, of course, hots dogs.

Now, not to downplay the satisfaction of those savory items, but this year, NYC had an additional surprise in store for me (yes, for me). It was on 5th Avenue, across from Central Park, in front of the Apple store: Free Ben&Jerry's samples. How amazing is that combination? Free, high-quality ice-cream. And it gets better: Ben & Jerry’s motivation for this amazing giveaway is....wait for it....volunteering! Yep! They teamed up with Target to promote volunteering across the country by creating new flavors, Berry Voluntary and Brownie Chew Gooder.

Needless to say, I got in line twice to try them both (got in the line twice). Hands down, Berry Voluntary is absolutely delicious and a new all-time favorite.

Berry Voluntary vs. Americone Dream

So here’s the interesting part. (I know, how can it get more interesting than all that, right?) Target and Ben&Jerry’s are partners with VolunteerMatch.org. As you probably know, the people of VolunteerMatch.org are all about volunteering. They're always looking for a challenge and this time, they're taking on none other than Stephen Colbert of the Colbert Report (the guy on right after John Stewart of the Daily Show - we LOVE the Daily Show!). Turns out back in 2007, Mr Colbert convinced the iconic Ben and Jerry’s brand to bend to his will and produce an ice cream for him - Americone Dream. (I haven’t tried it....sounds like it has potential and requires a lot of hard work).

VolunteerMatch’s president, Greg Baldwin, has rightly challenged Mr. Colbert to an "Ice Cream Taste Off." The “Ice Cream Taste Off” is to take place on The Colbert Report in an effort to demonstrate the delicious patriotism of Berry Voluntary compared to Mr. Colbert’s crass and obvious attempt to wrap himself in the American flag and overcome the lagging ratings of his show compared to that of John Stewart’s ‘The Daily Show (which I'm a huge fan of. Have I mentioned that yet?).

Vote for Volunteering!

Check out the Challenge Video to take action, comment, and share the page with others. It’s time to promote American values of civic engagement versus celebrity marketing!

If you’re on Twitter, here are some Twitter bits you are free to use:

Stephen Colbert:            @StephenatHome

Campaign hashtag:          #icecreamchallenge

Short URL:                      http://t.co/7wpW4vp

Via:                                 @VMConnect

Or just send out this Tweet: VolunteerMatch vs Stephen Colbert #IceCreamChallenge. Which is better: Americone or Berry Voluntary? http://t.co/7wpW4vp @stephenathome

Chris Jarvis & Angela Parker

c: 317-371-4435 | chrisjarvis@realizedworth.com

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