Matt Harding to raise funds for disadvantaged children in Africa
Howard Lake | 23 July 2008 | Blogs
Whenever I come across another online phenomenon, meme or cult site, I often regret that the person or people responsible didn’t use their 15 minutes of fame to benefit charity. Be it Mahir Cagri, Alex Tew and countless other overnight celebrities (intentional or not), just imagine what they could have achieved for others.
So, it is with considerable delight that I’ve learned that Matt Harding, the former video-game programmer who has danced his way across the world and shared his smile-inducing jig with millions via YouTube, is to do just that.
According to Reuters, 31-year-old Harding, whose latest video “has been watched by nearly 19 million people on YouTube”, wants to use his fame to help raise funds to buy and donate laptops to poor children in Rwanda, one of the countries in which he danced with locals.
He has already met with United Nations officials and with Stride, the company that funded his two recent trips around the world, to discuss his plans. He intends to go to Rwanda to teach the children himself.
Well done, Matt!
If you haven’t enjoyed the daft but uplifting Where the Hell is Matt (2008)? video, here’s your chance.
About Howard Lake
Howard Lake is consultant editor of UK Fundraising. He founded the site in 1994 and successfully sold it in 2022. As director of Giving X Ltd he is exploring growing giving on a massive scale.
He is the founder of Fundraising Camp and co-founder of GoodJobs.