Avril Lavigne Launches Fundraising Campaign to Support Special Olympics

Multi-platinum recording artist, Grammy-nominated singer/songwriter and philanthropist Avril Lavigne has teamed up with CrowdRise, an online fundraising platform, to support Special Olympics. Proceeds from the "Team Rockstar" campaign, which launches today, will sponsor athletes competing in the 2015 Special Olympics World Games in Los Angeles.

The "Team Rockstar" fundraising campaign will begin today and end on Avril's birthday, September 27, 2014. September 27 is also global Eunice Kennedy Shriver Day, a day where Special Olympics Programs around the world celebrate the founder of Special Olympics and how one person can make a difference. The team raising the most amount of money during the competition will win dinner for them and a friend with Avril Lavigne. The top fundraising teams will have the opportunity to win a range of prizes, including signed Converse shoes worn by Avril, Google hangouts and calls with Avril, exclusive signed items, and other prizes.

"My fans always come out in a BIG way to support my Foundation's annual birthday campaign, and that's something I'm really proud of," said Lavigne. "This year, to get in the spirit for my new partnership with Special Olympics, I'm excited to challenge my fans to rally, create rockstar fundraising teams and compete to help make a difference. We have some fun surprises planned along the way so I'm looking forward to seeing the results!"

Patrick McClenahan, president and CEO of Special Olympics World Games Los Angeles 2015, commented: "We are thrilled that The Avril Lavigne Foundation has chosen Special Olympics as its charitable partner for Avril's birthday celebration. It takes $2,500 to fund one athlete's participation in the 2015 Special Olympics World Games. The fact that she is pledging to activate her deep and loyal fan base to help support 30 athletes from around the globe is a testament to Avril and her foundation's commitment to helping."

Fans join by creating a fundraising team. The campaign lets fans compete by recruiting their friends and family to be sponsors by contributing any amount of money, large or small. To learn more, visit Avril's CrowdRise page at www.CrowdRise.com/avril.

About The Avril Lavigne Foundation

Award-winning singer/songwriter and philanthropist Avril Lavigne created The Avril Lavigne Foundation in early 2010. The Avril Lavigne Foundation R.O.C.K.S.: Respect, Opportunity, Choices, Knowledge, and Strength in support of children and youth living with serious illnesses or disabilities. The Foundation partners with leading charitable organizations to design and deliver programs, raise awareness and mobilize support for children and youth living with a serious illness or a disability.

About CrowdRise

CrowdRise is the platform millions of people use to donate to charitable causes, create their own fundraisers and show the world their charitable lives. Launched in 2010 by Edward Norton, Shauna Robertson, and Moosejaw founders Robert and Jeffrey Wolfe, CrowdRise is the fastest growing online fundraising website for charitable causes and doing good. The CrowdRise community has raised over $130 million for charity to date and is on track to raise another $130 million in 2014 alone. If Facebook is the place that defines you by your friends and Twitter is what you use to say what you're doing right now then CrowdRise is the site for you to show how you give back. The power of the crowd is real, lots of small donations really do add up to create monumental impact.

CrowdRise is committed to innovation in fundraising, making raising money for your personal cause or charity fun and effective. It is the friend-to-friend fundraising home of The NYC Marathon, the Boston Marathon, The American Red Cross, Unicef, as well as celebrities like Sean Penn, Seth Rogan, Ian Sommerhalder, Sophia Bush, Paul Rudd, Olivia Wilde and Will Ferrell. The CrowdRise community was named a "Top 25 Best Global Philanthropist" by Barron's. And Mashable named CrowdRise something like "the best place to raise money online for your favorite causes."

About Special Olympics

Special Olympics is a global movement that unleashes the human spirit through the transformative power and joy of sports, every day around the world. They empower people with intellectual disabilities to become accepted and valued members of their communities, which leads to a more respectful and inclusive society for all. Using sports as the catalyst and programming around health and education, Special Olympics is fighting inactivity, injustice and intolerance. Founded in 1968 by Eunice Kennedy Shriver, the Special Olympics movement has grown to more than 4.4 million athletes in 170 countries. With the support of more than 1.3 million coaches and volunteers, Special Olympics delivers 32 Olympic-type sports and more than 81,000 games and competitions throughout the year. Special Olympics is supported by individuals, foundations and partners, including the Christmas Records Trust, the Law Enforcement Torch Run for Special Olympics, The Coca-Cola Company, The Walt Disney Company and ESPN, Lions Clubs International, Mattel, P&G, Bank of America, Essilor Vision Foundation, the B. Thomas Golisano Foundation, Finish Line, The Safeway Foundation, and Safilo Group. Visit Special Olympics at www.specialolympics.org. Engage with us on: twitter@specialolympics, fb.com/specialolympics, youtube.com/specialolympicshq, instagram.com/specialolympics and specialolympicsblog.wordpress.com.

About Special Olympics World Games Los Angeles 2015

With 7,000 athletes and 3,000 coaches representing 177 countries, along with 30,000 volunteers and an anticipated 500,000 spectators, the 2015 Special Olympics World Games - being staged in Los Angeles July 25 -August 2, 2015 - will be the largest sports-and-humanitarian event anywhere in the world in 2015, and the single biggest event in Los Angeles since the 1984 Olympic Games. The 2015 Special Olympics World Games, with the unparalleled spirit, enthusiasm, teamwork, joy and displays of courage and skill that are hallmarks of all Special Olympics events, will feature 25 Olympic-style sports in venues throughout the Los Angeles region. The Opening Ceremony, to be held July 25, 2015 in the historic Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, site of the 1932 and 1984 Olympic Games, is expected to attract 80,000 spectators. On April 30, 2014, LA2015 and ESPN announced a global programming deal that will see ESPN bring coverage of World Games to millions of fans around the world. Honorary Chairs of the Games are President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama, with Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti and California Governor Jerry Brown serving as Honorary Hosts. Current Founding Champions and sponsors include The Coca-Cola Company, Mattel, Deloitte, Toyota, Bank of America, Kaiser Permanente, Davis Elen Advertising, AEG, David Geffen, Steven Spielberg and his wife Kate Capshaw, The Walt Disney Company, and Knights of Columbus. LA2015, the Games Organizing Committee, is a recognized 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. For more information on the 2015 Special Olympics World Games, including volunteer and sponsorship opportunities, visit www.LA2015.org or on social with #TheWorldisComing on fb.com/LA2015, Twitter @losangeles2015 and Instagram.com/LA2015WorldGames.

Check out Avri's in a campaign video:

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