Hands Across America™ 2021

NASHVILLE, Tenn., March 17, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Dreamstime Co-Founder/COO and philanthropist, Jeff Prescott, has announced the reformation of the Hands Across America™ charity organization and the orchestration of a corresponding spring celebration. Poised to become the largest virtual handholding event in history, the Hands Across America 2021 ceremony (presented in-part by Dreamstime.com) will occur on Tuesday, May 25, 2021 in tandem with the 35th anniversary of the 1986 event.

Mirroring the number of individuals who joined hands to participate in the inaugural assembly, the May 2021 commemoration is set with the goal to gather 6.5 Million Americans. Hands Across America challenges Americans to come together for a common cause: to lend aid to individuals who are vulnerable and to those who suffer from hunger and homelessness.

Every person who donates $1 will receive a virtual hand. Upon receipt, the nonprofit is encouraging donors to share their hand, as a virtual symbol and connection, via their respective social media pages (Facebook/Instagram/ Twitter), leading up to the May 25, 2021 event (in association with the 35th Hands Across America Anniversary) and POSTING AGAIN on Tuesday, May 25, at 3PM Eastern as a simultaneous virtual "show of hands" in support of those less fortunate.

"The virtual Hands Across America 2021 ceremony comes at a time when our country is divided by differing opinions, devastated by the COVID-19 pandemic, and troubled with individuals suffering from hunger and homelessness," said Jeff Prescott. "With the number of homeless in the U.S. estimated at 552,830 and 115 million new households estimated to fall into food insecurity as a result of COVID in 2021, Hands Across America is a movement that cannot wait."

The ultimate goal is to join an entire America in the virtual handholding event–welcoming 365 Million Americans to take part. The Hands Across America 2021 celebration will continue throughout the balance of the year and conclude on December 31, 2021 as a final handholding celebration.

The reintroduction of Hands Across America (a 501c3 charity), driven by Prescott's personal passion to raise awareness surrounding hunger and homelessness in the U.S., arrives with the objective to become a bigger, more powerful philanthropic movement by transforming the charitable giving climate all together, while simultaneously unifying Americans of all races, color, creed, educational backgrounds and financial status.

Held on May 25, 1986, the initial Hands Across America was one of the largest community gatherings in our nation's history, bringing together more than 6 million Americans to form a human chain as a sign of solidarity across 16 states (New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Washington D.C., Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, Tennessee, Arkansas, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California).

Backed by celebrities, entertainers and dignitaries (including Michael Jackson, Oprah Winfrey, Bruce Springsteen, Lionel Richie, Dionne Warwick, President Ronald Reagan and First Lady Nancy Reagan among hundreds of others), the human chain stood far and wide across the United States. Entertainers in music, film and television, Whoopi Goldberg, Raquel Welch, Ben Vereen, Donny Osmond, Donna Mills and Dudley Moore were among the 10,000 participants in Long Beach; Liza Minnelli, Michael Douglas, Susan Anton, Gregory Hines and Edward Olmos joined hands in New York; while Gerald Ford and Frank Sinatra connected with folks in Rancho Mirage. Corporations such as Coca-Cola and Citibank lent support to create a national phenomenon.

"Without unification, we are nothing. Our goal is influenced by people—American people and their needs—to help the less fortunate through unfortunate circumstances large or small," Prescott further introduced. "If we help 'enough' in this country, then we can make a world of difference. We need to bring it back home so that other nations can look up to us for the right reasons. The People."

ABOUT HANDS ACROSS AMERICA™

The re-imagination of Hands Across America [a 501(c) 3 non-profit located in Franklin, TN] is a passionate undertaking near and dear to Jeff Prescott, who is the brainchild behind reorganization of the non-profit and orchestration of the Hands Across America 2021 virtual ceremony.

Having grown-up motherless and in foster care throughout his youth, Prescott experienced homelessness and suffered from malnutrition; he is sensitive to the experience and what it is like to live and survive under such tragic conditions.

Courageous, grateful and blessed, Prescott turned his unfortunate life circumstance into promise, to become a successful entrepreneur and businessman. Today, Prescott is the Co-Founder of Dreamstime.com. As a personal dedication, and in the spirit of helping those less fortunate, he re-established Hands Across America.

Working alongside like-hearted individuals, communities and organizations, Hands Across America is committed to lending aid to combat hunger, homelessness and malnutrition, and offer assistance to those in need, those who are vulnerable and those who have suffered natural tragedies, or loss of income. The goal is to garner $1 from every American to raise $328 Million.

The Hands Across America 2021 ceremony is a symbolic virtual handholding event orchestrated with the goal to change the present narrative of our country in a mutual initiative to join hands and reunite Americans.

As a sistering grassroots initiative, Hands Across America will work directly with manufacturers to provide consumer packaged goods (CPGs) to the less fortunate, donating 100% of all profits to the cause to help feed the hungry and homeless.

Follow HANDS ACROSS AMERICA™ on all social media by clicking here. 

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ABOUT DREAMSTIME
Launched in 2000, Dreamstime has transformed the stock photo business to become one of the world's largest stock photo communities. Offering high-quality stock content, generated by a dynamic and diverse community of more than 650,000 photographers, artists and videographers worldwide, the platform features over 145+ million files and employs proprietary AI, PhotoEye to filter 3 million monthly approvals as a complement to Dreamstime editor experts.

With the goal and objective to become more actively involved in social and community philanthropic endeavors, and public education and environmental awareness campaigns, Dreamstime has championed community initiatives in support of various charitable organizations (including WHO and Doctors Without Borders); has lent a helping hand to supply free subscriptions to NGOs during the COVID-19 pandemic and teachers and students to facilitate access and visual support to complete assignments. Demonstrating its innovative and steadfast corporate responsibility, Dreamstime established the "COVID-19 Momentum Challenge" in June 2020 as a community-centered strategy to enhance its members' livelihood; at present, its 650,000 contributors receive an additional 10% in all royalties in addition to donations.

For more information, visit Dreamstime.com.

SOURCE Hands Across America