Donkey & Elephant Facebook Challenge Ask Voters Which Party is Most Charitable

WESTHAMPTON BEACH, NY — Who's more charitable, Republicans or Democrats? Or in this case, donkeys or elephants?

That's what Clint Greenbaum of Westhampton Beach is asking in a recently launched Facebook page, where both sides can make donations and prove who's the most philanthropic.

The goal is for Republicans and Democrats to donate online, and challenge their friends — and enemies — to follow their lead, Greenbaum said.

The results will be announced the day after Election Day. The winner will be able to brag that it is "The Most Charitable Political Party!"

But the biggest winners, Greenbaum said, are the children.

All proceeds will be donated to two non-profit organizations benefitting children, Making Headway, a foundation dedicated to the care, comfort and cure of children with brain and spinal cord tumors, and Seats of Dreams, a national nonprofit charity that gives donated sports and entertainment tickets to disadvantaged, disabled or sick children.

Greenbaum co-founded Making Headway and also co-founded Seats of Dreams. The smiles and joy the tickets have brought scores of young kids seeing their first sporting event or show has fueled his mission of kindness; photos and letters of thanks are displayed on the Seats of Dreams Facebook page.

The Donkey & Elephant Challenge, he said, "is a fun way to play off peoples' political loyalties in order to benefit deserving children.For once, politics can have a positive spin, delivering positive results."

The Facebook challenge, Greenbaum said, seemed like a fun way to give back during a contentious election season.

"As we all get closer and closer to Election Day, everyone is being barraged by the presidential, senatorial, congressional and local campaigns. . . Democrats and Republicans alike are sick and tired of the intense partisan division and animosity," Greenbaum said. "So, imagine, a fun and tongue-in-cheek campaign, The Donkey & Elephant Challenge, that is positive, substantive, and will end with results that no one will complain about."

The challenge, he added, will "prove that politics doesn't have to be a fight to the death. For once, it can help fight death."

Greenbaum was inspired to create the Donkey and Elephant Challenge by the Ice Bucket Challenge and the Livestrong Bracelet, both of which showed that if "a charity fundraising idea can catch people's imaginations, then dollar by dollar, millions can be raised. Heck, at this point, tens of thousands of dollars would be okay with the Donkey & Elephant Challenge. We want the buck to stop here."

Giving back has always meant everything to Greenbaum and he has dedicated his life to his children's charities.

When Greenbaum’s son Jake was only three months old, he and his wife, Elisa, got the news that no parents should ever have to hear — their baby had a malignant brain tumor.

“He had major brain surgery and then chemotherapy, but he was very lucky — he survived,” Greenbaum said. “He’s an absolute miracle. We call him our miracle boy.”

In the years that passed, Jake, now 26 years old and unable to speak, developed a love of baseball games — something that inspired Greenbaum to pay his good fortune forward by co-founding of Seats of Dreams.

“It’s always a great thing to be able to find an asset that someone doesn’t want and create value out of it for someone else,” Greenbaum said. “We take the tickets and instead of selling them, give them to deserving children who can’t afford to go to these kinds of events."

There is nothing, he said, that can compare to the face of a child who is watching his first-ever baseball game, Greenbaum said.

"The most fun thing has been some of the thank-you notes,” Greenbaum said. “These kids are real fans.”

Seats of Dreams is a "mean and lean organization," Greenbaum said. "It has been able to give out about 100,000 tickets since its inception with a staff of one, and some hard working volunteers."

Seeing children’s dreams come true, Greenbaum said, has been deeply meaningful. “It’s a thrill,” he said. “Watching a game on TV, it’s not the same. You have to be there to experience it.”

Images courtesy of Clint Greenbaum.