DUBAI, UAE, July 14, 2015 /PRNewswire/ --
- Western Union's WU Wish programme
records 2.23 Million viewers
- Free wish registration is open
until 18 July
The Western Union Company reports tremendous success with 'WU
Wish' - a programme that encourages people to describe their wishes
for someone other than themselves, and aims to fulfil the most
deserving among them. WU Wish has recorded more than 2.23 million
viewers on its social media platforms, and these interactions are
being led by residents of the UAE, where the programme is
underway.
To view the Multimedia News Release, please click:
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Six winners were granted the wishes they registered on WU Wish,
at an Iftar event hosted by the company on 8 July, in Dubai. The winning wishes ranged from
providing basic needs for family members, to ensuring the welfare
of strangers, and fulfilling community concerns. Filipino
Michael Rivera wished for a
prosthetic eye for his seven-year-old daughter who has anophthalmia
(the absence of one eye), and was overwhelmed at winning the cost
of her surgery. "I am just a low wage earner, and my salary is used
for everyday expenses. With WU Wish, I can now pay for her eye
surgery - although she will never have full sight, at least I can
put a smile on her face," he said to the audience, in tears.
(Other winning wishes are listed below)
In the last 30 days, Western Union has seen notable traffic on
its social media channels, and this interest has led to extremely
high levels of participation in the unique programme, explains
Rajiv Garodia, Senior Vice President
Middle East & South Asia at
Western Union. As of June 30, the
promotional video for the programme had garnered 1,174,460 views on
Facebook - with 41,023 likes, comments and shares - and 1,056,176
views on YouTube.
"At Western Union, we believe that better things happen when
money moves. WU Wish is a simple programme that gives everyone a
chance to share their personal stories - of why they save and send
money to friends, family and loved ones. Equally, it highlights the
values of sharing and selflessness, and care and concern for
others. Participating in the programme is as easy as describing a
wish for another person.
"We are listening to each of these inspirational stories, and we
intend rewarding the most unusual, unique, and deserving among
them. We would like to make a meaningful difference in their
lives," said Garodia.
WU Wish will announce another 10 winners by the first week of
August, with each standing to win AED10,000 to fulfil a wish for
someone else, and travel vouchers worth AED10,000 to facilitate
visits to loved ones.
During Ramadan, WU Wish is also
rewarding participants with weekly prizes of Iftar meals for up to
15 people, especially created and catered to the households of
winning wish nominees. Winners are chosen by draw, and the first
seven winners include residents who made wishes for their
colleagues, friends and family members.
The WU Wish programme will run until 18 July, and free public
participation is open on wuwish.com, wuwish.com/Ramadan, the WU Wish channels on Facebook and
YouTube, on the radio stations Al
Rabia, Mirchi FM and Radio 4, and under the
hashtag #WUwish.
Western Union customers who make a transaction during the
promotion can claim two wish nominations, and those who do so using
their MyWU loyalty cards can avail of three nominations.
The WU Wish programme is also running in Qatar, Saudi
Arabia and Kuwait.
Winning WU wishes, 8 July,
2015
- Abu Dhabi resident
Teri Skillman wished to help an
unknown family who was affected by the recent Nepal earthquake: "The security guard in my
building, Sumit Gurung, lost his
home in a village outside Pokhara, and his wife was injured. They
are still living under a tarp and the monsoon rains are coming
soon. Would you please help me buy a flat pack shelter to give to
his family? I would so appreciate it if you could
help."
- Tarcela Isada from Ajman wished to get a tricycle for her family
members who lost their home to Typhoon Yolanda: "I have been
working here in the UAE as a housemaid for the last 20 years, and I
just wish to help my sister buy a tricycle to transport her
daughters to school, and our mother to the hospital. They can't
afford to buy this, since their house was washed out."
- Filipinos Michael Rivera and
Meriam Ruth J wished for prosthetic aids for their
physically-challenged family members
- Single father Arnaldo Luneta
Hinolan wished to see his daughter on her 18th
birthday.
- Pahmey considerately wished for clean drinking water, to serve
her remote village in the
Philippines. "The people there normally drink from a small
waterfall in the mountain, which we have to fetch by foot. We
already initiated a project by digging a water hole, but the funds
are simply not enough. I wish WU can help, so the people
can live normally with clean water supply, without walking
great distances by foot," she wrote.
About Western Union
The Western Union Company (NYSE: WU) is a leader in global
payment services. Together with its Vigo, Orlandi Valuta, Pago
Facil and Western Union Business Solutions branded payment
services, Western Union provides consumers and businesses with
fast, reliable and convenient ways to send and receive money around
the world, to send payments and to purchase money orders. As of
March 31, 2015, the Western Union,
Vigo and Orlandi Valuta branded services were offered through a
combined network of over 500,000 agent locations in 200 countries
and territories and over 100,000 ATMs and kiosks. In 2014, The
Western Union Company completed 255 million consumer-to-consumer
transactions worldwide, moving $85
billion of principal between consumers, and 484 million
business payments. For more information, visit
http://www.westernunion.com.
© 2015 Western Union Holdings, Inc. All Rights
Reserved.
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SOURCE Western Union