Template:Appeal/JimmyLetterA-2010/en: Difference between revisions

<p>I got a lot of funny looks ten years ago when I started talking to people about Wikipedia.</p>

<p>Let’s just say some of the business types were skeptical of the notion that volunteers from all across the world could come together to create a remarkable pool of human knowledge – all for the simple purpose of sharing.</p>

<p>No ads. No profits. No agenda.</p>

<p>A decade after its founding, nearly 400 million people use Wikipedia and its sister sites every month - almost a third of the Internet-connected world.</p>

<p>It is the 5th most popular website in the world. The other four have been built and maintained with billions of dollars in investment, huge corporate staffs and relentless marketing.</p>

<p>But, Wikipedia isn’t anything like a commercial website. It is a community creation, written by volunteers making one entry at a time. You are part of our community. And I’m writing today to ask you to protect and sustain Wikipedia.</p>

<p>Together, we can keep it free of charge and free of advertising. We can keep it open – you can use the information in Wikipedia any way you want. We can keep it growing – spreading knowledge everywhere, and inviting participation from everyone.</p>

<p>Each year at this time, we reach out to ask you and others all across the Wikimedia community to help sustain our joint enterprise with a modest donation of $20, $35, $50 or more.</p>

<p>If you value Wikipedia as a source of information – and a source of inspiration – I hope you’ll choose to act right now.</p>

<p>All the best,</p>

<p>'''Jimmy Wales'''</p>

<p>Founder, Wikipedia</p>

<p>P.S. Wikipedia is about the power of people like us to do extraordinary things. People like us write Wikipedia, one word at a time. People like us fund it, one donation at a time. It's proof of our collective potential to change the world.</p>