Contest Rules
THE FOLLOWING CONTEST IS OFFERED ONLY IN THE UNITED STATES AND THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA ("D.C."). VOID OUTSIDE THE FIFTY (50) UNITED STATES/D.C., AND WHEREVER PROHIBITED. DO NOT ENTER THIS CONTEST IF YOU WERE NOT THIRTEEN (13) YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER (EXCEPT MAINE RESIDENTS, WHO MUST BE 18 OR OLDER) AS OF 11/18/09 AND A LEGAL RESIDENT OF AND CURRENTLY RESIDING IN ONE OF THE FIFTY (50) UNITED STATES OR D.C. NOMINEE MUST ALSO MEET THE ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA STATED HEREIN. THIS CONTEST WILL BE CONSTRUED AND EVALUATED ACCORDING TO U.S. LAW.
CONAGRA FOODS® FOUNDATION CHAMPIONS AGAINST CHILD HUNGER CONTEST ("Contest") OFFICIAL RULES
Sponsored by ConAgra Foods Foundation ("Sponsor")
NO PURCHASE OR PAYMENT OF ANY KIND IS NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. A PURCHASE OR PAYMENT WILL NOT INCREASE YOUR CHANCE OF WINNING. CONTEST IS SUBJECT TO ALL FEDERAL, STATE, LOCAL AND MUNICIPAL LAWS AND REGULATIONS.
1. HOW TO ENTER THE CONTEST: The Contest begins at 07:00:01 a.m. Eastern Time ("ET") on 11/18/09 and ends at 11:59:59 p.m. ET on 1/22/10 ("Contest Period"). To enter the Contest, submit the following: (1.) a color photo (digital or scanned) as a JPEG or GIF file (400KB or less) of the subject of the essay ("Nominee") and (2.) an original essay (in English) of no more than five-hundred (500) words that describes the Nominee who the entrant ("Nominator") feels deserves recognition for their efforts to end child hunger. Both Nominee and Nominator must also meet the eligibility criteria stated herein. Entry must be submitted by an individual, eligible Nominator only; no group Entry allowed and no groups may be nominated, including partner organizations or grant recipients. Prizes will only be awarded to Finalist Nominees and Winner and Share Our Strength, or Feeding America, or Feeding America food bank, or recognized charitable hunger relief organization that is tax exempt under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 of his/her choice, subject to Sponsor's approval. Nominator can nominate himself/herself. Nominators who nominate other Nominees will not receive a prize. Photos are required for entry but will not be factored into Phase 1 judging (see Rule #2 below). Go to www.championsagainstchildhunger.org and follow the on-screen instructions for submitting your photo and essay ("Entry"). Entry may be publicly displayed on Sponsor or Sponsor's agents' websites, at Sponsor's sole discretion. For each valid Entry submitted, ConAgra Foods Foundation will donate $10.00 to Share Our Strength, up to $20,000.00. Limit one (1) Entry per person/e-mail address for entire Contest Period. Submitted Entries will not be acknowledged or returned except as provided herein. Entries must be received no later than 11:59:59 p.m. ET on 1/22/10. Entries must be completed in one session, as Nominators will not have the ability to revisit the web site at a later time to complete Entry. Sponsor assumes no responsibility for lost, late, damaged, misdirected, illegible, forged, garbled, or incomplete Entries or other contest materials, all of which are void. Entry may not depict any intellectual property of third parties, including copyrighted material or third-party trademarks and Nominator must have permission from any person whose name or likeness is used in Entry. Entry must be suitable for publication at Sponsor's sole discretion. Any Entry containing dangerous, obscene, indecent, violent, sexually explicit, discriminatory or other morally or legally objectionable depictions or material, in the opinion of the judges or Sponsor, will result in disqualification of the corresponding Entry and of the Nominator who submitted it. ENTRIES POSTED ARE NOT EDITED BY SPONSOR AND ARE THE VIEWS/OPINIONS OF THE INDIVIDUAL NOMINATOR AND DO NOT REFLECT THE VIEWS OF THE SPONSOR OR PARTNERS IN ANY MANNER. By participating in the Contest, each Nominator and Nominee fully and unconditionally agrees to be bound by and accepts these Official Rules and the decisions of Sponsor and its judges (including, without limitation, decisions regarding eligibility of Entries, the selection of winners, and the awarding of prizes), which are final and binding in all respects. All Nominators, Nominees, and Entries are subject to verification by Sponsor.
2. JUDGING: Finalist Nominees and Winner will be determined through judging conducted in two (2) phases.
Phase 1 Judging: In the first phase of judging, Phase 1, a qualified judging panel appointed by Sponsor will select the five (5) best Entries ("Finalist Nominees") from among all valid, eligible Entries received during the Contest Period based on the following criteria: 30% Inspiration: Inspiration is evaluated based on how the Nominee or Nominee's group has already inspired and empowered others to become involved and the potential to inspire others to join the fight moving forward; 30% Impact: Impact is evaluated based on the tangible change on child hunger observed in the Nominee's community (e.g., building awareness in Nominee's community, number of volunteers secured for Nominee's project, providing food for one hungry family) and effectiveness of the Nominee's overall program or solution as detailed in the Entry; 20% Creativity: Creativity is evaluated based on how original and innovative the Nominee's solution is and how new ideas to create change and solve the issue of child hunger are incorporated; 20% Content:Content is evaluated on how the Entry tells the story of child hunger in America and builds awareness for the issue, how it puts a face to the problem and how it incorporates and conveys emotion to the reader or viewer. In the event of a tie, the Entries involved in the tie will be re-judged by an additional qualified judge who will serve as a tiebreaker and who will evaluate Entries according to the criteria listed above. Subject to Nominator and his/her Nominee's compliance with these Official Rules, the Nominee appointed by the Nominator whose Entry was chosen will be one (1) of the five (5) Finalist Nominees in this Contest.
Phase 2 Judging: Beginning at 12:00:00 p.m. ET on 2/22/10 through 11:59:59 p.m. ET 3/19/10, the Five (5) Finalist Nominee Entries selected in Phase 1 judging will be posted online at www.championsagainstchildhunger.org and may be voted upon by eligible, registered, users, as well as through the ConAgra Foods Foundation Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/ConAgraFoodsFoundation. You may vote for one (1) of the five (5) Finalist Nominee Entries, based on the above criteria, by following the onscreen instructions for casting your vote. Online voting will begin at 12:00:00 p.m. ET on 2/22/10 and end at 11:59:59 p.m. ET on 3/19/10 ("Online Voting Period"). Limit: one (1) vote per person/household/email address, per day during the Online Voting Period. For the purposes of this Contest, a "day" shall be defined as 12:00:01 a.m. ET to 11:59:59 p.m. ET. Voters must be thirteen (13) years of age or older (except Maine residents, who must be 18 years of age or older) and legal residents of the 50 United States or the District of Columbia. Any attempt by a Finalist Nominee and/or his/her family/friends to vote more than the number of times authorized herein using multiple names or email address and/or any other fraudulent mechanism, as determined by Sponsor in its sole discretion, shall give Sponsor the right to disqualify Finalist Nominee in its reasonable discretion. The Finalist Nominee Entry receiving the highest number of non-suspect, valid votes will be deemed the Grand Prize winner (subject to verification). In the event of a tie, the Entries involved in the tie will be re-judged by an additional qualified judge who will serve as a tiebreaker and who will evaluate Entries according to the criteria listed above in Phase I Judging. Judging of all Entries will be completed on or about 3/25/10.
3. PRIZES: Subject to the terms and conditions of these Official Rules, Five (5) Finalist Nominee Prizes and one (1) Grand Prize will be awarded in the Contest. Five (5) Finalist Nominee Prizes: The Finalist Nominee Prize consists of a cash prize of $500.00 awarded to the Finalist Nominee and a $500.00 donation made by ConAgra Foods Foundation in the Finalist Nominee's name to Share Our Strength, or Feeding America, or Feeding America food bank or recognized charitable hunger relief organization that is tax exempt under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 of his/her choice, subject to Sponsor's approval. Approximate retail value ("ARV") of a Finalist Prize: $500.00 (not including the $500.00 donation). Total ARV of all Finalist Prizes is $2,500.00. One (1) Grand Prize: The winning Finalist Nominee will receive a 3-day/2-night trip for two (winner and guest) to New York, NY. Grand Prize includes round trip coach air transportation from the major commercial airport nearest the winner's residence, 2 nights' standard hotel accommodations (single room, double occupancy), a tour of the Food Network studios (subject to availability and scheduling), $1,000.00 cash, and a $5,000.00 donation by ConAgra Foods Foundation made in Grand Prize winner's name to Share Our Strength, or Feeding America, or Feeding America food bank or recognized charitable hunger relief organization that is tax exempt under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 of his/her choice, subject to Sponsor's approval. ARV of the Grand Prize is $4,000.00 (not including the $5,000.00 donation). Actual value of Grand Prize is may depend upon point of departure and air/hotel fluctuations. Any difference between the stated ARV and a lesser value that may be advertised online or found elsewhere shall not be awarded or credited. . Airports, carrier, seating, hotel and travel dates and times are subject to scheduling and availability and are to be determined by Sponsor in its discretion. In the event the Grand Prize winner's primary residence is within two hundred (200) miles of the New York City metropolitan area, the winner may not be awarded airfare but rather Sponsor may, in its sole discretion, provide the Grand Prize winner and his/her companion round trip ground transportation instead of such round trip coach air transportation (ground transportation as determined by Sponsor). Grand Prize winner and companion must travel on the same itinerary and on dates and at times specified by Sponsor. Grand Prize winner and companion are responsible for obtaining proper documentation (e.g., valid photo ID) prior to travel. All costs and expenses not specified herein, related to the Grand Prize or the use thereof, including but not limited to additional transportation costs, additional lodging, meals, taxes (including income taxes), gratuities, insurance, surcharges and other expenses incurred by accepting and using the prize are the sole responsibility of the Grand Prize winner. Grand Prize winner's companion must, as of the date of travel, be a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent U.S. resident residing in the fifty (50) United States or the District of Columbia, who is eighteen (18) years of age or older and able to contract in his/her own name. All travel must be completed by April 5, 2011. Actual travel date is subject to availability and at the sole discretion of the Sponsor. The donation portion of the Finalist Nominee Prizes and Grand Prize will be paid directly by Sponsor to Share Our Strength, Feeding America, or Feeding America food bank, or recognized charitable hunger relief organization that is tax exempt under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 of his/her choice, subject to Sponsor's approval, designated by Finalist Nominees and Grand Prize winner. Neither the Nominator or Nominee has any claim of any kind or nature to the donation portions of the Finalist Nominee Prizes or the Grand Prize nor may they claim any charitable or other deductions with respect to the donation portions of the Finalist Nominee Prizes and Grand Prize. The Feeding America or Share Our Strength food banks designated by Finalist Nominees and Grand Prize winner are subject to verification and approval by Sponsor. Total ARV of all prizes (not including donations): $6,500.00. Any portion of a prize not accepted by Grand Prize winner or Finalist Nominee will be forfeited.
4. GRAND PRIZE WINNER/FINALIST NOMINEE NOTIFICATIONS AND PRIZE RESTRICTIONS: Potential Finalist Nominees and their corresponding Nominators will be notified by overnight mail on or about 2/01/10 and both must sign and return an Affidavit of Eligibility, Release of Liability/Publicity and Assignment of Rights in the form(s) provided by Sponsor within ten (10) days of notification (first attempt) or prize will be forfeited and the Entry receiving the next highest score in Phase 1 judging will be selected as a potential Finalist Nominee. If a Nominator or Finalist Nominee is an eligible minor in his/her state of residence, their parent/legal guardian must execute and return any required documents as noted previously in these rules. Failure of a Finalist Nominee and corresponding Nominator (or their parent/legal guardian, if applicable) to timely return all documents required under these Official Rules may result in disqualification of the associated Entry and the selection of an alternate. The Grand Prize winner will be notified by overnight mail and must sign and return an Affidavit of Eligibility, Release of Liability/Publicity and Assignment of Rights in forms provided by Sponsor within ten (10) days of notification (first attempt) or prize will be forfeited and the Finalist Nominee receiving the next most votes in Phase 2 judging will be selected as the potential Grand Prize winner. If Grand Prize winner is considered a minor in his/her state of residence, his/her parent or legal guardian must execute and return any required documents as noted previously in these rules and accompany the Grand Prize winner as his/her travel guest. Winner's companion must execute and deliver to Sponsor an Affidavit of Eligibility, Release of Liability/Publicity and Assignment of Rights in the form(s) provided by Sponsor by the date indicated for return on the document(s) prior to booking travel as a condition to use of any component of the prize. All federal, state and local taxes on the prizes are Finalist Nominees and Grand Prize winner sole responsibility. If for any reason, an advertised prize cannot be awarded as stated herein, Sponsor reserve the right to substitute a prize of equal or greater value. Prizes are non-transferable and non-assignable, and are not refundable, and must be accepted as awarded. Prizes are awarded "AS IS" with no warranty, representation, or guarantee, express or implied, in fact or in law, made by Sponsor or for which Sponsor shall be liable, including, without limitation, ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, NON-INFRINGEMENT OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. Unused components of the prize shall be forfeited and have no redeemable cash value.
5. ELIGIBILITY: Both Nominators and Nominees must be U.S. citizens or lawful permanent U.S. residents residing in the fifty (50) United States or the District of Columbia, who are thirteen (13) years of age or older (except Maine residents, who must be 18 or older) at the time of entry except where prohibited. Employees of the following entities and members of their families or households are not eligible to be Nominators or Nominees: Sponsor, its parent company, subsidiary companies, affiliates, printers, advertising and promotion agencies, Partners or paid employees of partners, distributors or retailers. For purposes of these Rules, "families" is defined as parents, legal guardians, spouses, siblings, children, and "steps" of each. All federal, state and local laws apply.
6. LIMITATIONS ON LIABILITY: Sponsor is not responsible for any lost, late, misdirected, damaged, forged, incomplete, illegible, or garbled Entries. Sponsor is not responsible for any: (a) telephone, computer, or network malfunction or error; (b) communication disruption or other forces beyond the reasonable control of the Sponsor, including disruption related to Internet traffic, virus, bug or non-authorized intervention; or (c) damage caused by computer virus or otherwise resulting to any computer from Nominator's access of the Contest website. If such malfunction, error, disruption or damage occurs, and impairs the administration, security, fairness, integrity or proper play of the Contest, Sponsor may, in its sole discretion, suspend or terminate the Contest by posting a notice on www.championsagainstchildhunger.org. If the Contest is terminated before the end date, Sponsor reserves the right (but does not have the obligation) to determine winners from all eligible Entries received as of the termination date. Persons found tampering with or abusing any aspect of this Contest, or whom Sponsor believes to be causing malfunction, error, disruption or damage will be disqualified. Sponsor reserves the right to void Entries or votes made through any robotic, automatic, mechanical, programmed or similar entry duplication method and to disqualify any individual using such a method. Should multiple users of the same e-mail account enter the Contest and a dispute thereafter arise regarding the identity of the Nominator, the authorized subscriber of said e-mail account at the time of Entry will be considered the Nominator. "Authorized account subscriber" is defined as the natural person who is assigned an e-mail address by an Internet access provider, on-line service provider or other organization which is responsible for assigning e-mail addresses or the domain associated with the submitted e-mail address.
7. RELEASE. By participating in this Contest, each Nominator, Finalist Nominee, and Grand Prize winner forever and irrevocably releases and holds harmless Sponsor and Sponsor's parent or subsidiary companies, affiliates, distributors, retailers, advertising and promotional agencies ("Promotional Parties"), and all of their respective employees, officers, directors, owners, representatives and agents from and against all losses, damages, liabilities, claims, actions, proceedings, or judgments arising out of or relating to Nominator's Entry, or Nominators', Finalist Nominees', or Grand Prize winner's participation in this Contest, or the award, use or misuse of any prize awarded hereunder, including any travel related thereto.
8. GENERAL CONDITIONS: Submission of an Entry grants Sponsor and its designees the right in perpetuity to publish, use, adapt, edit and/or modify the Entry in any way, in commerce and in any and all media worldwide now known or hereinafter developed, without limitation and without further consent of the Nominator or Nominee, or consideration or notice to the Nominator or Nominee. Submission of any Entry further constitutes the Nominator's and Nominee's (with their parent's or guardian's consent, if applicable) irrevocable assignment and transfer to the Sponsor any and all rights, title, and interest in and to the Entry, including, without limitation, all intellectual property rights. Entry may be publicly displayed on the Contest website, and Sponsor and Sponsor's agents' websites, at Sponsor and Sponsor's agents' sole discretion. Entries must be the original work of the Nominator; may not have won previous awards; may not have been published previously; must not infringe third-party rights, and must be suitable for publication. The right to submit or use an Entry must not be restricted in any way. Modifying, enhancing or altering a third party's pre-existing work does not qualify as Nominator's original creation. Entry may not include any intellectual property of third parties, including copyrighted material. Entry may not, in the opinion of Sponsor or the judges, be obscene, libelous, reflect poorly on the Sponsor or be otherwise inappropriate for use in advertising or for promotional or publicity purposes. Entry must be submitted by an individual, eligible Nominator only; no group Entry allowed and no groups may be nominated, including partner organizations or grant recipients. All Entries become the property of the Sponsor and may be used by Sponsor for any purpose and in any media whatsoever, whether or not now known, without territorial or time limitation and without further compensation or notice to Nominator or Nominee, or any consent of Nominator or Nominee, and will not be returned. Void where prohibited. No substitution of prize or cash equivalent except at Sponsor's sole discretion. Sponsor reserves the right to conduct verification activities and a background check on the Finalist Nominees and their associated Nominators. To the extent necessary and permitted by law, Grand Prize winner, Finalist Nominees, and their Nominators shall authorize this background check, and cooperate in any background check and verification activities. Sponsor reserves the right to disqualify any Entry (including the associated Finalist Nominee and Nominator) based on such background check if Sponsor determines in its sole discretion that awarding a prize to any such individual might reflect negatively on Sponsor. Nominators and Nominees will cooperate with Sponsor and its representatives in connection with any and all verification and background check activities. By accepting a prize, Finalist Nominees and Grand Prize winner waive the right to assert as a cost of winning said prize, any and all costs of redemption of said prize and any and all liability that might arise from redeeming or seeking said prize. Except where prohibited, acceptance of prize constitutes Finalist Nominees and Grand Prize winner's consent to use of their name, likeness and biographical data in perpetuity for advertising and promotional purposes without additional compensation, notice or consent.
9. GOVERNING LAW: All issues and questions concerning the construction, validity, interpretation and enforceability of these Contest Official Rules, or the rights and obligations of Nominator and Sponsor in connection with the Contest, shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the substantive laws of the State of Nebraska, without regard to conflicts of law principles. All Nominators and Nominees consent to the jurisdiction and venue of the state of Nebraska, Douglas County.
10. OFFICIAL RULES: For a copy of the Official Rules, send a self-addressed, stamped #10 business envelope to ConAgra Foods Foundation Contest, P.O. Box 6000, Morton Grove, IL 60053. Request must be received by 6/05/10. Limit one (1) request per postmarked outer mailing envelope.
11. GRAND PRIZE WINNER AND FINALIST NOMINEE LIST: For the Grand Prize winner and Finalist Nominees' first initials, last names, and home cities, send a self-addressed, stamped, #10 business envelope to: ConAgra Foods Foundation Child Hunger Champions Contest Winners, One ConAgra Drive, Omaha, NE 68102. Request must be received by 6/05/10. Limit one (1) request per postmarked outer mailing envelope.
12. SPONSOR: ConAgra Foods Foundation, One ConAgra Drive, Omaha, NE 68102