Tag: 3BL

ATLANTA, May 13, 2024 /3BL/ – The Home Depot Foundation is committing up to $300,000 to support immediate disaster relief and long-term recovery efforts in several states impacted by recent tornadoes and severe flooding. Over the past few weeks, severe weather has caused catastrophic damage to communities in Iowa, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Michigan, Texas, Tennessee and many others.  Preliminary reports from NOAA show there have been more than 500 tornado reports across the United States in April and May.

The Home Depot Foundation is partnering with Operation Blessing, Team Rubicon, Convoy of Hope, American Red Cross and more to be on the ground in these communities immediately after the storms, providing support and shelter, distributing relief supplies and meals, and assisting with cleanup and relief efforts.

“Every second counts when responding to a disaster. The Home Depot Foundation’s support and partnership throughout the year helps us to prepare and respond quickly when disasters strike,” said Operation Blessing’s Chief Operating Officer, Drew Friedrich. “With their help, we distributed more than 100,000 meals in our meal kits and 1,400 disaster relief kits over the past several weeks for those in need.”

Team Depot, The Home Depot’s associate volunteer force, has worked with local and national nonprofits to donate and distribute much-needed emergency supplies and help with debris removal from roadways, neighborhoods and homes. Over the past several weeks, The Home Depot Foundation, through local stores, has donated more than $50,000 in emergency relief supplies to help those in need.

“We’ve seen firsthand the devastation across these communities, and we know they will continue to need a lot of support in the weeks and months ahead,” said Erin Izen, executive director of The Home Depot Foundation. “Our goal at The Home Depot Foundation is to be there every step of the way for communities impacted by a disaster. From our associates providing boots on the ground in the wake of a storm, to additional funding for immediate and long-term recovery efforts, we are dedicated to supporting our communities through these difficult times.”

The Home Depot is actively working to get emergency response products to stores in impacted areas. Several urgent truckloads of priority products, including water, chainsaws, generators, tarps and dehumidifiers, have been sent to stores across the Southwest, Midwest and Mid-Atlantic regions. Emergency products were moved to the front of the stores to make them easily accessible for customers.

The Homer Fund, Home Depot’s associate assistance program, has already provided immediate financial support to associates impacted by these severe weather events. Associates affected received emergency funds to support temporary housing, food and clothing expenses. The Homer Fund will continue to support associates impacted by these disasters.

Keep up with all the latest Home Depot news! Subscribe to our bi-weekly news update and get the top Built from Scratch stories delivered straight to your inbox.

Originally published on U.S. Bank company blog

This spring, 40 U.S. Bank volunteers participated at the annual Women’s Build with Habitat for Humanity of Greater Sacramento.

“It is all about helping to break the cycle of poverty,” said Ann Marie Westrum, a U.S. Bank private wealth mortgage loan officer who is also on the board of directors for Habitat for Humanity of Greater Sacramento.

“Landlords can take advantage of tenants with rent hikes or poor living conditions, but creating an affordable and decent place to live helps families improve their immediate quality of life and build equity for generational wealth,” she said.

Through her volunteerism, Westrum said, she has also learned several new construction skills that have helped her renovate her own home and investment properties.

“I highly recommend women come volunteer with their local Habitat affiliates because it expands your mind, and your heart,” she said. “When you’re working side by side with the family that the house is actually being built for, and you hear their moving story, you can’t help but feel grateful to be there. The mission of Habitat for Humanity is to put love into action, and that is exactly what happens when you volunteer.”

From 2020 to 2023, U.S. Bank provided more than $6.7 million in corporate contributions and U.S. Bank Foundation giving nationally to Habitat, and matched employee giving at more than $84,000.

U.S. Bank also has an investment in helping this specific Sacramento neighborhood, said Lisa Gutierrez, U.S. Bank director of business development for affordable housing investing and lending.

“What makes this event even more special is that we are serving the Cornerstone community, where we partnered with Cornerstone, a Mutual Housing and Habitat for Humanity Community, to provide affordable tax equity and construction lending to bring this exciting and fully encompassing community to life,” she said.

Helping organizations work to create safe and affordable housing is a cornerstone of the U.S. Bank Community Possible giving and engagement strategy.

“U.S. Bank supports efforts that connect individuals and families with sustainable housing opportunities,” said Ashley Abenoja-Bocek, a U.S. Bank community affairs manager who participated in the build. “As a volunteer, it is special to be a part of this work in a hands-on way with my bank colleagues who care about creating a vibrant community in Central California as much as I do.”

On May 2, U.S. Bank also will support the “Big Day of Giving” for Habitat for Humanity of Greater Sacramento. U.S. Bank will match 100% of donations up to $50,000 for Big Day of Giving. Support from Big Day of Giving will go toward critically needed operating funding.

For more about the Women’s Build, watch the video above.

Whirlpool Corporation designs products with the needs of consumers and the planet in mind. As noted in the 2023 Sustainability Report, the company is on track to reduce emissions from products in use (scope 3 category 11) by 20% by 2030, compared to a 2016 baseline.

About Whirlpool Corporation

Whirlpool Corporation (NYSE: WHR) is a leading kitchen and laundry appliance company, in constant pursuit of improving life at home and inspiring generations with our brands. The company is driving meaningful innovation to meet the evolving needs of consumers through its iconic brand portfolio, including Whirlpool, KitchenAid, JennAir, Maytag, Amana, Brastemp, Consul, and InSinkErator. In 2023, the company reported approximately $19 billion in annual sales, 59,000 employees, and 55 manufacturing and technology research centers.  Additional information about the company can be found at WhirlpoolCorp.com.

View original content here.

Are you ready to embrace the growing demand for plant-based products and provide assurance to consumers that your claim is validated and credible? Join SCS Global Services for an insightful webinar as we navigate the process of achieving full compliance with SCS’s Plant-Based Certification Standard. Led by Tony Hall, the Client Services Manager for our Product Claims division, this webinar will explore key aspects of certification, including:

Assessing Fit: Is the SCS Plant-Based Certification the right fit for your products and facilitiesCertification Process Overview: Diving into an overview of the certification process, from initial scoping through final certification decisionsDesk Audits: Reviewing expectations for both desk audits or inspections and guiding you through various stepsQ&A session: Engage in a live Q&A session with our experts to get the answers you need

Register today and secure your spot now to embark on a journey towards certification success!

REGISTER FOR THE WEBINAR HERE

By registering, you will get access to the webinar recording.

For inquiries, please contact:

Shyama Devarajan 
Senior Marketing Manager, SCS Global Services 
sdevarajan@scsglobalservices.com

Pepco | The Source

We reached a major milestone in our quest toward providing a more sustainable future with the installation of our 200th electric vehicle (EV) charger in Maryland. This is a big step toward our goal installing 250 chargers across Montgomery and Prince George’s Counties. A ribbon cutting ceremony was held to mark the occasion, with several Montgomery County and Pepco officials on hand to power up the 200th charger. If you’re in the Wheaton area, this milestone charger is located inside the Wheaton Regional Park at the Frank Rubini Athletic Complex.

We launched our EV Smart public charging network in 2019 with the goal of installing 250 public chargers, including Level 2 chargers and DC fast chargers, across our Maryland service area. In partnership with Montgomery Parks and Prince George’s County Department of Parks and Recreation, part of the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission, 85 of the EV charging stations will be installed on local park land.

The installation of EV chargers supports Maryland’s climate goal of reaching net-zero emissions by 2045. The Wheaton charging stations are also located within a United States Department of Energy designated Justice40 Census Block, helping drive equitable access to charging infrastructure across the communities we serve.

To learn more about our EV chargers, including charger rates visit our EVsmart website.

CLEVELAND, May 13, 2024 /3BL/ – KeyBank’s Key4Women will present “Play You: The Role of a Lifetime”, a free, one-hour virtual event on Wednesday, May 22nd at 1:00 p.m. EST / 3:00 p.m. MT / 4:00 p.m. PST.

This webinar is in celebration of National Small Business Month and the remarkable contributions of women entrepreneurs, leaders, and their invaluable supporters. Whether you are a business owner or navigating the business world, all are invited to attend. 

KeyBank’s Head of Community Banking and Key4Women National Director, Rachael Sampson, will be joined by Pam Sherman, Actor, Writer, Leader and President of The ShermanEDGE, to discuss the importance of bringing your authentic self to make a meaningful impact on those you serve, lead, and influence. 

In this webinar, participants will learn how to bring your presence to the EDGE with these insights:

Explore: Your leadership brand and authentic connections.Dream: Visualize success and share your story.Grow: Out of your comfort zone.Excite: Ignite your mission.

“Your uniqueness is your competitive edge.” said Sampson. “We are confident attendees will walk away having an action plan on how they can increase their presence and build the confidence they need to chase their dreams. Key4Women is excited to have Pam join us to celebrate National Small Business Month.”

Pam Sherman is an actor, writer, leadership consultant and recovering lawyer who was profiled in People Magazine about her transition from lawyer to actor. Today, she speaks, facilitates, and coaches leaders all over the world about how to present themselves and how to find their EDGE: Explore, Dream, Grow,

& Excite®. Sherman works with individuals, Fortune 500 companies, law firms, advertising agencies and is a highly rated global resource for the leadership organizations, EO, Vistage, YPO, and Tiger 21.

For more information, contact key4women@keybank.com or register online by May 21st here. 

About KeyBank

KeyCorp’s roots trace back nearly 200 years to Albany, New York. Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, Key is one of the nation’s largest bank-based financial services companies, with assets of approximately $187 billion at March 31, 2024. Key provides deposit, lending, cash management, and investment services to individuals and businesses in 15 states under the name KeyBank National Association through a network of approximately 1,000 branches and approximately 1,200 ATMs. Key also provides a broad range of sophisticated corporate and investment banking products, such as merger and acquisition advice, public and private debt and equity, syndications and derivatives to middle market companies in selected industries throughout the United States under the KeyBanc Capital Markets trade name. For more information, visit https://www.key.com/. KeyBank is Member FDIC.

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Originally published on Aflac Newsroom 

Intuitively, and by watching a child’s reaction, Aflac was confident that My Special Aflac Duck® was effective in supporting children and families going though cancer treatment, but we could only say “anecdotally” — until now. Recent clinical research finds that our robotic duck helps pediatric cancer patients cope with distress and anxiety associated with treatments.

In the multi-year study, both parents and caregivers reported a reduction in distress, nausea, pain and treatment — and procedural anxiety — for their children who received My Special Aflac Duck®, according to a clinical trial released April 5.

Research Team Includes (but not limited to):

Dr. Ann Mertens – Research Director of the Cancer Survivor Program at the Aflac Cancer and Blood Disorders Center of Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, and Professor of Pediatrics at Emory University School of Medicine 
 Dr. James Klosky – Director of Psychology and Neuropsychology at the Aflac Cancer and Blood Disorders Center of Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, and Professor of Pediatrics at Emory University School of Medicine 
 Dr. Tamara Miller – Pediatric Hematologist/Oncologist at the Aflac Cancer and Blood Disorders Center of Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, and Associate Professor of Pediatrics at Emory University School of Medicine

Researchers at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta and Emory University School of Medicine conducted a randomized clinical trial utilizing My Special Aflac Duck®. They surveyed 160 caregivers with children undergoing cancer treatment across eight hospitals throughout the United States over a three-year period. The team said they expected the duck to provide comfort to the pediatric cancer patients, but there is one finding that surprised them.

Questions researchers asked caregivers account for 18 symptoms of distress called the “global measure of parental distress” marking a holistic look at how helpful the duck could be for caregivers.

“Not only did initial observations yield statistically significant and positive results for the children in the My Special Aflac Duck® group, but we also found that the duck benefitted caregivers such as parents and guardians,” Klosky said. “This finding is notable because we utilized a global measure of parental distress in the study, suggesting that My Special Aflac Duck® intervention resulted in significant symptom relief among those who care for young children on-treatment for cancer.”

Ines Rodriguez Gutzmer, Aflac senior vice president and Chief Communications Officer, said this unexpected finding is a celebrated addition to an overall positive study showcasing the duck’s valuable contributions.

“It’s reassuring to confirm that My Special Aflac Duck is working, helping pediatric cancer patients and those who care for them,” Gutzmer said. “The impact of the duck on caregivers provides additional evidence that our efforts in supporting the entire children’s ecosystem are tangible, helping them to stay well and strong and to be better equipped to care for the patients. This unexpected finding further expands the impact and success of the program.”

The Aflac Childhood Cancer Foundation Inc. has distributed more than 29,000 ducks free of charge to children three and up diagnosed with cancer and blood disorders such as sickle cell disease. The duck is also a hallmark of Aflac’s commitment to children with cancer, which started in 1995 and continues today with $181 million and counting donated to research, treatment and awareness. My Special Aflac Duck® is the result of more than 18 months of research and development prior to the duck launching in 2018. The duck provides comfort and companionship through play, the way children are already accustomed to. The duck can also receive its own “treatment” through medical play accessories, one of the most-enjoyed features of the duck, according to the study. The medical play accessories further comfort the child by helping familiarize common medical equipment such as a stethoscope, an IV, a syringe and more. The corresponding App also enables children to use their imaginations to play and to learn more about their treatments.

“This important research further extends our commitment to children with cancer, which has been our philanthropic focus for nearly 30 years,” said Buffy Swinehart, senior manager of Corporate Social Responsibility at Aflac. “Our work began at the Aflac Cancer and Blood Disorders Center of Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta and now extends throughout the U.S., Japan and Northern Ireland. We’re excited to build on this great news, expand our reach and provide comfort and joy through My Special Aflac Duck®.”

Watch a demonstration of My Special Aflac Duck in both English and Spanish. Visit Aflac.com to learn more about Aflac Corporate Social Responsibility.

Aflac WWHQ | 1932 Wynnton Road | Columbus, GA 31999
Z2400411

Deadly flooding in Kenya has killed over 260 people and displaced over 280,000 as it swept away entire communities and destroyed bridges, roads, healthcare facilities, and other key infrastructure. Dangerous mudslides have engulfed buildings, schools, businesses and homes.

Torrential downpours have submerged over 41,000 acres of croplands and thousands of livestock have died or been lost amidst the deluge. In a country where two-thirds of people live in poverty and many depend on agriculture for their livelihoods, a hunger crisis may be imminent.

The flooding has also contaminated clean water sources, making ponds, rivers, and streams a breeding ground for diseases. Cholera cases have already been reported and other waterborne illnesses like diarrhea are likely, compounding the impacts of malnutrition. Action Against Hunger is responding in affected areas, including Tana River, Mandera, Isiolo, West Pokot, and Baringo Counties, distributed sanitation and hygiene kits to over 71,000 people across five countries. Families received 20-liter Jerricans, 10-liter buckets, soaps, and water treatment chemicals, all of which can last for three months. Women and girls were also given menstrual hygiene kits.

Action Against Hunger is supporting cash transfers to the affected populations, which will reach 48,000 people. Teams are conducting outreach in the hardest-to-reach areas, ensuring access to health services, and educating people about proper hygiene practices and the threat of waterborne diseases. Many people were given tarpaulins for temporary shelters, emergency latrines, mosquito nets, and sleeping nets. Currently, countless families across the country are living in displacement camps with little to their name. Many have left behind their entire lives and said goodbye to the only home they have ever known.

Displacement increases food insecurity. Prior to the floods, around two million people in Kenya were food insecure and 847,000 children were malnourished. Action Against Hunger is emphasizing the urgent need for funding and continued support in the aftermath of one of Kenya’s worst floods in history.

Climate change is the likeliest contributor to the higher-than-average precipitation. Last fall, research from World Weather Attribution showed that rain and flooding in Kenya, Ethiopia, and Somalia was twice as intense due to climate change. Around the world, natural disasters are growing in size and magnitude and preventing people from accessing healthcare, clean water, food, and other basic necessities.

In Kenya, Wednesday May 8th was declared a public holiday in order to mourn the victims.

About Action Against Hunger in Kenya

Action Against Hunger has been working in Kenya since 2002. Last year, teams reached over 923,000 with programs aimed at improving food security, increasing access to clean water and sanitation, treating malnutrition, and preventing climate-induced hunger. Following the recent flooding, Action Against Hunger is responding to urgent needs and providing assistance to over 71,000 people.

Learn more about the floods here. 

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Story by Dancliff Mbura and Kenneal Patterson 

World class equipment and services company, CNH, has released its 2023 Sustainability Report.

The report highlights how it worked to support its customers, employees and communities last year.

The report outlines CNH’s commitment to invest in technologies and innovative solutions, a $12.8 million investment in local communities and more.

Read the full report here

CNH chooses to be a part of important global initiatives, such as the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals and the Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi). The company’s global footprint enables it to support many local communities through giving and partnership.

Originally published by on FOX 5 Atlanta

An Atlanta high school senior’s passion for helping others dealing with mental health issues just won her a major scholarship through the Taco Bell Foundation.

Continue reading here