The Home Depot Foundation Announces $400,000 Investment in Atlanta Community

 (3BLMedia/theCSRfeed) (ATLANTA, GA) November 3, 2010 - Today, The Home Depot® Foundation hosted its fifth Annual Building Community Day recognizing innovation, collaboration and impact among Atlanta area nonprofit organizations. Twenty organizations received grants totaling $400,000 focused on creating a healthier and more sustainable region. 

Building Community Day, which The Home Depot Foundation sponsors in partnership with the Georgia Center for Nonprofits, featured a panel discussion titled ‘Nonprofit Governance: Addressing the Disconnect between Theory and Reality,’ followed by facilitated group discussion exploring the implications for organizational functioning, board performance and accountability.  A special awards reception followed recognizing the 2009 Building Community Day grant recipients, who each received a $20,000 grant, including:   ·         Atlanta Historical Society, Inc. ·         Atlanta Humane Society ·         Be The Match Foundation ·         Center for Children & Young Adults, Inc. ·         Cobb Works, Inc. ·         The Gateway Center ·         Girls, Inc. ·         Goodwill Industries International, Inc. ·         Horizon Theatre Company ·         Hosea Feed the Hungry and Homeless ·         Jewish Family & Career Services ·         The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society ·         Partnership Against Domestic Violence ·         Project GRAD Atlanta ·         Open Hand Atlanta ·         Senior Connections ·         Southeastern Horticultural Society ·         The Carter Center ·         Theatre in the Square ·         Year Up   During 2010, The Home Depot Foundation has invested over $9.1 million in Atlanta area nonprofits, including those receiving grants today. Other grant recipients include Woodruff Arts Center, Atlanta Botanical Garden, Atlanta Community Food Bank and Atlanta Habitat for Humanity.   “We feel it is especially important to support local nonprofits that share our goal of creating a healthier and more sustainable Atlanta,” said Kelly Caffarelli, president of The Home Depot Foundation. “By creating partnerships with these notable organizations, we believe we have the opportunity to make a significant impact on our hometown.”   The Home Depot Foundation largely focuses its funding and volunteer efforts on building green and healthy communities. Through Building Community Day, the Foundation has the opportunity to connect with some of Atlanta’s most effective nonprofit organizations that fall outside of the Foundation’s usual areas of giving. In addition to representatives of the 20 organizations being recognized, the leaders of nonprofits that have participated in the prior years were on hand to congratulate their colleagues.   About Building Community Day Four years ago, The Home Depot Foundation established the Building Community Day event as a means to reach out to our nonprofit neighbors and friends working so hard to strengthen our communities.  Since that time, the Building Community Day Event has strengthened 60+ nonprofit organizations by building peer networks, providing information and resources on pertinent trends, and granting over $1 million in vital operational support. The Building Community Day program now includes a year-long agenda featuring three annual alumni events.   About The Home Depot Foundation Created in 2002, The Home Depot Foundation supports nonprofit organizations dedicated to creating and preserving healthy, affordable homes as the cornerstone of sustainable communities. The Foundation’s goal is for all families to have the opportunity to live in healthy, efficient homes they can afford over the long-term; to have access to safe, vibrant parks and greenspaces; and to receive the economic, social and environmental benefits of living in a sustainable community. Since its formation, The Home Depot Foundation has granted $190 million to nonprofit organizations and supported the development of more than 95,000 homes, planted more than 1.2 million trees, and built or refurbished more than 1875 playgrounds, parks and greenspaces. For more information, visit www.homedepotfoundation.org, follow us on Twitter @homedepotfdn and like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/homedepotfoundation.   ### HDF10100 

Today is an exciting day for us at The Home Depot Foundation. It’s our fifth annual Building Community Day…a special day we set aside each year to meet with a small group of leaders from Atlanta area nonprofit organizations to discuss important challenges they face as they serve the Atlanta community. Why Atlanta? Atlanta is The Home Depot’s hometown…it’s where we were founded 30 years ago, and it’s where our Store Support Center for our 2,200 stores continues to be located.

  For Building Community Day, we work with the Georgia Center for Nonprofits to select a different group of participants each year, and we establish a full agenda of facilitated group discussions and presentations from philanthropic experts. Sharing best practices and common pitfalls is the best way for us all to continue to drive excellence in our respective companies and organizations... http://bit.ly/OsXJS