The late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was adored by family, friends and a large community of supporters. Following her passing in 2020, several of Justice Ginsburg’s personal items were donated to SOS Children’s Villages, an international nonprofit dedicated to the care of vulnerable children and families.  

These items, which included some of her famous collars and her personal gavel, were sold at auction by Bonhams, with the proceeds used to establish The RBG Endowment Fund at SOS Children’s Villages. The endowment will finance education and family economic empowerment programs in the 138 countries where SOS Children’s Villages is present. 

Havas Red knew SOS Children’s Villages needed to make a splash. Working collaboratively with the client and Bonhams, we developed and implemented an integrated media strategy that maximized awareness of — and revenue from — The RBG Endowment Fund auction, as well as built brand awareness of the incredible charitable work of SOS Children’s Villages. 

Considering the late Justice’s “notorious” reputation and how highly she valued education and family, we crafted a compelling campaign that united RBG’s legacy with the mission of SOS Children’s Villages. The campaign, “RBG for SOS,” employed an integrated media strategy that combined earned, organic and paid social efforts to promote the auction and endowment fund to targeted audiences. Red Havas kicked off earned media outreach with a nationally distributed press release and worked in sync with Bonhams on a surround-sound media relations effort. We also created a variety of paid and organic social content that was distributed via SOS Children’s Villages’ channels. 

The results of our merged media approach speak for themselves: The auction brought in more than half a million dollars for The RBG Endowment Fund at SOS Children’s Villages. The top lot of the auction — one of RBG’s iconic judicial collars crafted from golden glass beads — achieved more than 58 times its estimated value when it sold for $176,775. 

Not only will this endowment fortify RBG’s legacy of trailblazing service for years to come, but it will also empower the next generation of notorious thinkers and doers. We’re proud to have partnered with SOS Children’s Villages for this special campaign!