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More than 13,000 Ford employees, retirees and dealers will work on 310
community service projects in 26 countries for the ninth annual Ford
Global Week of Caring
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Projects expand in the Middle East as volunteers in Ford’s newest
region join the global effort
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Volunteers are putting a special emphasis on projects that support and
protect water resources, in keeping with Ford Motor Company’s
corporate water strategy
Company Website:
http://corporate.ford.com/
DEARBORN, Mich. -- (Business Wire)
Next week, 20 employees from Ford South Africa’s Struandale Engine Plant
will spend a day converting a metal shipping container into a soup
kitchen capable of serving 500 disadvantaged people a week.
The work at Lingelethu Soup Kitchen north of Port Elizabeth is one of
310 community service projects to be completed during Ford Motor
Company’s ninth annual Global Week of Caring. In all, more than 13,000
volunteers from Ford operations on six continents – Africa, Asia,
Australia, Europe, North America and South America – will contribute
81,000 hours of expertise and labor to improve their communities.
“Ford Global Week of Caring is one of the many ways Ford and its
employees are going further to improve the quality of life for people in
the communities where we live and work,” said Jim Vella, president, Ford
Motor Company Fund and Community Services. “Ford employees embrace the
company’s legacy of caring and the importance of giving back. As Ford
expands globally, our commitment to creating a better world grows with
it.”
That will be evident more than ever this year as Jim Benintende,
president of Ford Middle East and Africa, leads volunteers from the
company’s newest international business unit on a beach clean-up project
in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates.
“I’m so proud of the incredible work our teams in the Middle East and
Africa are doing,” Benintende said. “From improving homes that look
after abandoned children with HIV, to physical therapy for those with
disabilities, to helping plant vegetable gardens for older adults,
employees and dealers across the region are inspiring us all in the ways
they give back.”
In addition to thousands of employee volunteers taking part in Ford
Global Week of Caring, the company also is contributing $348,000 to
nonprofit agencies to purchase the tools, supplies and materials needed
to complete many of the community service projects.
Ford volunteers are putting a special emphasis on projects that support
and protect water resources, a basic necessity for people everywhere.
This is in keeping with the company’s corporate water strategy aimed at
understanding and reducing water consumption at its global facilities
and across its supply base.
Global projects with a water focus this year include:
- Argentina: Install water pipes for rural communities
- China: Clean up coastlines and rivers
- Germany: Construct an irrigation system at an environmental
education center
- India: Set up water purifiers for schools
- Indonesia: Upgrade a sanitation system and install a water pump
and filter for a school
Also on the Ford global volunteer to-do list:
- Australia: Make repairs at a wildlife sanctuary
- Brazil: Renovate children’s nursery facilities
- Mexico: Remodel orphanages
- Thailand: Conduct a recycling program and install recycled
equipment at a school
- Vietnam: Paint and repair schools
In the United States, more than 1,000 Ford employees will participate in
70 volunteer projects across 14 states throughout the week. This
includes a Ford Accelerated Action Day on Sept. 11, when volunteers in
Michigan and Ohio will participate in community service and other
projects.
While the Ford Volunteer Corps is active throughout the year, Ford
Global Week of Caring is the highlight of a year-round effort to flex
the volunteer muscle of Ford employees, retirees and dealers to make a
positive difference in the neighborhoods and communities where the
company does business.
About Ford Motor Company Fund and Community Services
Ford Motor Company Fund and Community Services works with community
partners around the world to advance driving safety, education and
community life. Ford Motor Company Fund has operated for more than 60
years with ongoing funding from Ford Motor Company. The award-winning
Ford Driving Skills for Life program teaches new drivers through a
variety of hands-on and interactive methods. Innovation in education is
encouraged through scholarships and programs that transform education
systems and connect classroom learning to the real world. Through the
Ford Volunteer Corps, more than 25,000 Ford employees and retirees work
on projects that better their communities in 30 countries. For more
information, visit www.community.ford.com.
For news releases, related materials and high-resolution photos and
video, visit www.media.ford.com.
Contacts:
Ford Motor Company Fund
Todd Nissen
313.322.4898
tnissen@ford.com
or
Ford
Motor Company Fund
Eric Mitchell
734.612.8267
emitch15@ford.com
Source: Ford
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