CAFAmerica to distribute royalties from Bob Dylan's Christmas album to UK charity Crisis

11 December 2009

Bob DylanA “Donor Advised Fund” (DAF) administered by CAFAmerica will be used to channel some of the royalties for charitable donations from sales of Bob Dylan’s new Christmas album, ‘Christmas in the Heart’.

A DAF with CAFAmerica allows donors in the US to support and manage global philanthropic initiatives and to give tax effectively across borders.

Columbia/Epic, a label of Sony Music Entertainment, have opened a DAF for the sole purpose of donating royalties from Bob Dylan’s ‘Christmas In The Heart’, to make grants to Crisis, one of the UK’s leading charities, dedicated to ending homelessness by delivering life-changing services and campaigning for change. CAFAmerica will also help Bob Dylan to support other charities outside the US.

Royalties from the album will be donated to charity in perpetuity and ‘Christmas in the Heart’ album has already raised $125,000 for charity.

CAFAmerica CEO Susan Saxon-Harrold said, “We are thrilled that CAFAmerica will be able to assist Columbia/Epic and Bob Dylan in supporting grants to Crisis and other charities in the United Kingdom and United States. Bob Dylan’s generosity, lending both his name and his music to this noble effort, will ensure that thousands of people do not go hungry during the holiday season. CAFAmerica is delighted to find a charitable solution to assist Bob Dylan and his record company in supporting the causes they are committed to globally.

“Supporting a charitable initiative like this one in perpetuity is a bold move and is likely to result in a real difference in lifting people out of poverty.”

Bob Dylan announced that royalties in perpetuity from sales of his first ever Christmas album will be donated to Feeding America a charity in the US, as well as two UK based charities Crisis and the World Food Programme. Crisis estimates that the initial proceeds of the donations will provide 15,000 meals for homeless people in the UK over Christmas, as well as 500,000 meals for schoolchildren in the developing world.

Commenting about the grants, Bob Dylan said, "The problem of hunger is ultimately solvable, which means we must each do what we can to help feed those who are suffering and support efforts to find long-term solutions.”


Notes to editors

1. For more information about the Dylan Christmas album, please visit Bob Dylan’s website.

2. Charities Aid Foundation America (CAFAmerica) was founded in 1992. As a member organization of the United Kingdom based Charities Aid Foundation network of offices, which provide charitable financial services to individuals, global corporations, charities, and foundations. CAFAmerica is dedicated to expanding borderless charitable giving by providing guidance and international grant making solutions for donors and charities. Together with its UK subsidiary for dual US/UK taxpayers, the CAF American Donor Fund makes over $40 million in grants to charities in 76 countries around the world. CAFAmerica’s range of charitable solutions include Donor Advised Gifts, Donor Advised Funds, Matching Donor Advised Funds, Designated Funds, bequest planning and a ‘Friends of’ Charity Fund.

3. In October 2009, CAFAmerica made the Chronicle of Philanthropy’s “Philanthropy 400” list of U.S private fundraising charities.

4. Find out more information on the DAF and CAFAmerica

5. For more information from CRISIS, please see their press release on the subject.

Media contact

James Ketchell
T: 03000 123 214
E: jketchell@cafonline.org