Lowe’s Donates $1 Million to Keep America Beautiful Fund
Keep America Beautiful (KAB) announced it received a $1 million donation from the Lowe’s Charitable and Educational Foundation (LCEF) to support the national nonprofit’s mission to build and sustain vibrant communities. This is Lowe’s second $1 million contribution to the organization. The grant will support more than 100 community improvement initiatives in 2013, ranging from creating community gardens and augmenting recycling programs to planting trees and leading disaster restoration projects. “The cumulative impact of this Lowe’s Community Improvement Grant Program continues to be remarkable. Our intent is to ensure that all selected projects help to create vibrant communities that are socially connected, environmentally healthy and economically sound,” said Matt McKenna, president and CEO of Keep America Beautiful. “Together with our strong national network of affiliates and partners, we will continue to work hand-in-hand with their local Lowe’s Heroes and Lowe’s store managers to make a real difference in communities across the country.” The grant encourages KAB affiliates to engage with their local Lowe’s Heroes program, a company-wide volunteer initiative that offers Lowe’s employees the opportunity to work on projects in their own community. “Last year was our first year working with Keep America Beautiful, and we’ve learned a lot about our shared passion for making communities clean, green and safe,” said Marshall Croom, chairman of the Lowe’s Charitable and Educational Foundation. “The projects completed in 2012 by our Lowe’s Heroes and Keep America Beautiful volunteers will have a lasting impact on communities across the country for years to come.” Highlights of projects from the 2012 grant cycle included:
- Replanting and rebuilding the community in Harveyville, Kan., after a tornado had swept through in 2011;
- Planting 1,000 trees in Arlington, Texas, at the residential homes of those affected by tornadoes;
- The Fort Knox Military Families Community Garden, a one-acre vegetable and ornamental garden that was planted in spring 2012 to introduce military families to edible gardening, and environmental and nutritional education;
- Improving the storefronts of merchant properties on a two-mile stretch of a Columbus, Ohio, business district; and
- Creating a butterfly-themed natural play area in the Alief Community Garden in Houston.
For more information, visit www.kab.org and http://responsibility.lowes.com
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