CaringBridge® Selects CLS As Agency of Record

CaringBridge, a nonprofit that offers free, personalized Web sites to connect seriously ill or injured people with their family and friends, recently selected Carmichael Lynch Spong as its agency of record. This adds to the Minneapolis-based public relations firm’s growing list of non-profit clients. CaringBridge, of Eagan , Minn. , is funded nearly 90 percent by individual donations. Nielsen//NetRatings ranks CaringBridge.org as the third-most heavily trafficked non-profit Web site in the world, behind AARP.org and MoveOn.org.

When family members and friends are concerned about a patient who is hospitalized, in treatment or recovery, CaringBridge offers free, easily-created, private and personalized Web sites to ease the communication process. A CaringBridge Web site can help keep loved ones aware of a patient’s day-to-day progress. The user can select varying levels of privacy for his or her site, and it is always free. CaringBridge Web sites do not contain banner ads, pop-ups or spam. Since its creation in 1997, visitors to CaringBridge sites have left more than 15 million messages of hope and encouragement. The CaringBridge community includes families in all 50 states and over 190 countries around the world.

"Having Carmichael Lynch Spong on board to help spread the word about our nonprofit service means a lot to our organization," says Chris Moquist, director of marketing and communications for CaringBridge. "We’re confident in the firm’s ability to increase broad awareness of CaringBridge, and therefore help more and more families stay connected to share information, love and support during a critical time in their lives."

As one of the 20 largest public relations firms in the nation, Carmichael Lynch Spong represents a select portfolio of clients that are the leaders of their industries. Current nonprofit clients include the American Humane Association and TransFair USA, owners of the Fair Trade Certified trademark.

"It brings us an immense sense of fulfillment to be able to work with an organization like CaringBridge," says Douglas K. Spong, APR, president of Carmichael Lynch Spong. "From a business standpoint, we’re proud to be affiliated with such a successful enterprise; and from a personal standpoint, it is fulfilling to be able to aid distressed families in any capacity."