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Camille Kostek on How to Give Back During the Holidays (and Beyond)

The model and Voomerang cofounder talks charitable work and steps for getting involved in your local community.

Cara O’Bleness

Camille Kostek

Camille Kostek.

Day 9 of SI Swimsuit’s 12 Days of Swimsuit. Embark on a daily journey with us over this time, as we present exclusive features with your beloved SI Swimsuit models. Delve into a festive blend of holiday style, beauty insights, and invigorating workouts adaptable to any locale. Our SI Swimsuit models graciously share their top-notch advice tailored for the season. Stay tuned and celebrate the holidays in style with SI Swimsuit.

Six-time SI Swimsuit model and television personality Camille Kostek is working to give back to those in need—not just this holiday season, but all year long. The 2018 Swim Search co-winner and ’19 cover model is the cofounder of Voomerang, a charitable sweepstakes platform that she runs alongside her partner, four-time Super Bowl champion Rob Gronkowski. 

With the platform, Kostek and Gronkowski leverage their massive online platforms to help raise money for select charities. The brand is currently running a dream vacation sweepstakes to benefit the Gronk Nation Youth Foundation and a luxury sports car campaign to raise money for The Peter Frates Family Foundation. 

“Giving back is actually what brought us together,” Kostek shares. “We met at Morgan Memorial Goodwill in Boston in November of 2013 handing out Thanksgiving food baskets to families in need around the holiday. Getting involved in our communities is one of our favorite ways to spend our time off of work. Nothing fills our hearts like making others smile in a time of hardship or helping play our part in spreading awareness or giving back in however we can to bless others in some way.”

Since helping others is so important to Kostek, we chatted with her about the power of giving back this holiday season and beyond. Here are her tips for getting involved in your own community.

The power of giving back and how to get involved

While many choose the holiday season to focus on charitable work, Kostek reminds us that helping those in need whenever you can is an incredibly powerful gift.

“There is someone everyday somewhere in the world that needs some extra love or help at any time of the year,” she says.

And while not everyone has a huge online platform to leverage, Kostek says we can all use the voice we have to help those in need. She points out that social media is an incredibly powerful tool for getting involved in charitable work.

“Sending out a message on your Instagram story, for example, could be a great start,” she says. “A message to your followers inquiring about local charities to get involved with is a great way to be led in a direction that could connect you to organizations, like-minded people and communities that would be excited to welcome you and your helping hands and heart.”

In addition to reaching out to your network, the Connecticut native suggests following your passions. Consider finding organizations to aid that align with your interests.

“Another way is to think of something you love. If you are someone who loves being around kids or animals, you could search for an organization in your area for pets or programs benefiting children to dive into the world of giving back,” Kostek says. “Once you get involved, the feeling of helping others and blessing someone’s day will truly leave you with an everlasting feeling that will keep you wanting to come back or spread awareness to your circle of people.”

Below are more than a dozen organizations that Kostek suggests reaching out to:

The future of Voomerang

The aforementioned dream vacation sweepstakes and luxury sports car campaign are currently open for entry now through Jan. 1, 2024. Kostek’s Corvettes campaign will award one lucky winner with a 2023 model and a classic restored 1974 model, with a prize value estimated at $140,000. 

“Whoever wins chooses one for themselves and the remaining car is given to someone they want to pay it forward to,” Kostek explains. “Rob and myself will be personally delivering the Corvettes to the winner’s home, so head to voomerang.com to enter to win before this sweepstakes closes on New Year’s Eve!”

In the New Year, Voomerang will partner with other celebrities and select charities to make a positive impact in local communities across the country.

“We are looking for celebrities, influencers and impactful people on social media to join forces with us to shine light on charities that are near and dear to their hearts so that we can help to spread world wide awareness and give our audiences a chance at entering to win our next big sweepstakes,” Kostek says of the brand’s goals for 2024.

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Published
Cara O’Bleness

CARA O’BLENESS

Cara is a trending news writer/editor for Sports Illustrated Swimsuit. A passionate writer and editor with more than 10 years of experience in print and online media, she loves storytelling and believes that words have the power to change the world. Prior to joining the team, Cara worked as a writer and editor across a number of content verticals, including food, lifestyle, health and wellness, and small business and entrepreneurship. In her free time, Cara loves reading, spending time with her family and making her way through Michigan’s many microbreweries. She is a graduate of Michigan State University's School of Journalism.