Ford volunteers in Global Week of Caring

Ford New Zealand volunteers to join more than 13,000 Ford employees around the world in Ninth Annual Ford Global Week of Caring
• 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
• Projects expand for the first time to the Middle East as volunteers in Ford’s newest region join the global effort

AUCKLAND, New Zealand, 5 Sept. 2014 – Next week, 15 volunteers from Ford New Zealand’s head office in East Tamaki will step away from the key boards and pick up the gardening tools to help Sutton Park School in Mangere East with a number of grounds project including the installation of a new vegetable garden for students.

The work at Sutton Park School is in conjunction with Ford NZ’s charity partner of 25 years, Variety –The Children’s Charity. The project 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 Asia Pacific, 5300 Ford volunteers will participate in over 80 projects in China, India, Taiwan, Australia, New Zealand, Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, Philippines, Malaysia, and 8 emerging markets, including Cambodia, Singapore, Laos, Guam, Tahiti, etc. to support local schools and kids, local community and improve the environment.

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.

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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.

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