The Home Depot Foundation to Donate $1 Million Through Facebook Crowdsourcing Program

(3BL Media / theCSRfeed) ATLANTA - April 1, 2011 - Today, The Home Depot® Foundation launched a venture into social media philanthropy with its Aprons in Action Facebook program (facebook.com/homedepot), which allows the public to help determine where the Foundation’s grant dollars and volunteer hours are donated. 

Each month, Aprons in Action will feature four community improvement projects completed by Team Depot, the Company’s associate-led volunteer force, and a local nonprofit organization. Each project team has determined the additional work it could do with more funding and volunteer assistance from The Home Depot Foundation. Facebook users will vote on their favorite proposed project, and the winner of a $25,000 Home Depot gift card will be selected based on number of votes, the impact of the prior project to the community, and the originality of the proposed project.   As a finalist in the Aprons in Action Program, each nonprofit receives $5,000 in Home Depot gift cards.    The finalists for the month of April are currently featured on The Home Depot’s Facebook page. Voting closes on May 1 at noon ET. The winner will be announced at noon (ET) on May 2.   “Our associates use their project know-how skills in communities every day to improve the homes and lives of deserving families,” said Kelly Caffarelli, president, The Home Depot Foundation. “Our Aprons in Action Facebook program lets us connect our volunteer efforts with the entire online community. We’re excited not only about highlighting our associates’ work, but also the work of the great nonprofits we partner with to complete projects in communities across the U.S.”   Much of The Home Depot Foundation’s philanthropic contribution comes from directly from associates volunteering their time and talents through Team Depot. Centered around company store locations, Team Depot partners with local nonprofits, also donating home improvement supplies to hundreds of community building projects annually. In 2010, Team Depot completed nearly 1,400 projects nationwide.   “Social media and philanthropy are a natural fit,” Caffarelli says. “What we’re doing that’s a little different here is getting people to support a cause they feel good about, letting them use our money to do it and giving our associates a chance to amplify their impact in their hometowns.”    The first four projects featured on Aprons in Action are: 

• Great Falls Children’s Receiving Home and The Home Depot Store #3103, Great Falls, Mont.

• Fort Bend CORPS and The Home Depot Store #6530, Rosenberg, Texas

• NeighborWorks Homeownership Center and The Home Depot Store #6966, Sacramento, Calif.

• Veterans Village of San Diego and The Home Depot Store #674, San Diego, Calif.

   

Each nonprofit finalist has the opportunity to encourage as many votes as they can for their project.   “You can bet we’ll be trying to get as many people as we can to vote for us,” said Veterans Village of San Diego (VVSD) President and CEO Phil Landis.    VVSD provides an early treatment program for homeless veterans who have substance abuse issues. Fifty Team Depot volunteers partnered with VVSD to build a bike rack storage area, because vets at the facility rely heavily on their bikes and need a way to store and protect them.   “If we win the $25,000, we’ll be able to completely renovate our dining facility flooring and will remodel our veterans medical care facility, both projects that will make a profound impact on our clients.”   After 11 months, each of the monthly winners will again be featured on Aprons in Action and the public will determine which project deserves a grant of $250,000. Runner up grants of $150,000 and $100,000 will also be awarded.    How to Vote   Voting runs from April 1 through May 1 at 12 noon ET. Aprons in Action is on Facebook at www.facebook.com/homedepot or www.facebook.com/homedepotfoundation.    The final percentages of votes for each nonprofit will be posted on The Home Depot and The Home Depot Foundation’s Facebook pages on May 2 at 12 noon ET.     For more information and to view the program rules, visit The Home Depot on Facebook or go to www.homedepotfoundation.org .    About The Home Depot Foundation   In 2011, The Home Depot Foundation committed $30 million over three years to nonprofit organizations dedicated to improving the homes of economically disadvantaged veterans.  Through Team Depot, the Company's associate-led volunteer program, thousands of Home Depot associates volunteer their time and talents to positively transform neighborhoods and perform basic repairs and modifications to homes and to the facilities serving veterans with critical housing needs.   Since its formation in 2002, The Home Depot Foundation has granted more than $270 million to nonprofit organizations improving homes and lives in local communities. To learn more and see our associates in action, visit www.homedepotfoundation.org, follow us on Twitter @homedepotfdn, and like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/homedepotfoundation.     # # #   The Home Depot Foundation Media Contacts:   Paula Drake                                                                             Catherine Woodling 770-384-3439                                                                          770-384-2304

paula_drake@homedepot.com                                                   catherine_woodling@homedepot.com

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