Blessings in a Backpack Receives More Than $170,000 to Feed Children Through CBS RADIO and CBS EcoMedia Partnership
Donations from Station Advertisers Expected to Feed Over 700 Children in 12 Communities Nationwide
LOUISVILLE, KY, September 17, 2013 /3BL Media/ – For many students, returning to the classroom in the fall also means the return of steady meals. Blessings in a Backpack, a nonprofit dedicated to ensuring that elementary school children who may otherwise go without meals are fed over the weekends, today announced results of a partnership with CBS RADIO that will feed over 700 students in 12 communities across the country during the 2013-2014 school year.
The unique method of providing financial support is part of CBS EcoMedia's program that uses advertising dollars to fund community projects working in concert with its nonprofit partners. CBS RADIO stations in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Dallas, Houston and Philadelphia, among others, are participating in the program.
“No child should have to go hungry,” said Brooke Wiseman, chief executive officer of Blessings in a Backpack. “We are so thankful for the generosity and dedication of our partners, like CBS EcoMedia, that work to enhance Blessings’ impact and allow the program to reach a growing number of children across the nation.”
“We are extremely proud of this initiative and thank our advertisers for stepping up in support of this very important cause,” said Sue McNamara, senior vice president, sales, CBS RADIO. “We know what a difference this can make for students to become more competent scholars, achieve better test results, and engage in active learning experiences and we are thrilled.”
Blessings in a Backpack works with volunteers across the country to collect and package backpacks full of food, distributing them on Fridays to children who qualify for the federally-funded National School Lunch Program. Blessings currently feeds more than 60,000 children across 43 states in over 500 schools. The $170,000 plus donation from CBS RADIO will be dedicated entirely to feeding children.
“It is simply unacceptable that even one child – one person – should go hungry in America and, at EcoMedia, we’ve made it our mission to address the issue,” said Paul Polizzotto, founder and president of CBS EcoMedia, Inc. “It is incredibly gratifying to be able to make such a positive, quantifiable impact on the lives of so many children.”
The CBS RADIO partnership will support schools in:
- Baltimore, MD
- Chicago, IL
- Dallas, TX
- Hartford, CT
- Houston, TX
- Los Angeles, CA
- Minneapolis, MN
- Philadelphia, PA
- Pittsburgh, PA
- St. Louis, MO
- San Francisco, CA
- Tampa, FL
For more information on how to volunteer for or start a Blessings in a Backpack program in your community, visit www.blessingsinabackpack.org.
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About Blessings in a Backpack:
Hunger has both short- and long-term negative effects on children’s health and ability to succeed in school. Blessings in a Backpack is a results-oriented 501(c)(3) program dedicated to ensuring that impoverished American elementary school children are fed over weekends. Blessings in a Backpack currently feeds more than 60,000 children across 43 states in over 500 schools. For more information visit www.blessingsinabackpack.org.
About CBS RADIO
CBS RADIO is one of the largest major-market radio operators in the United States, delivering original local audio and video content, events and on-demand programming across a variety of on-air, digital and mobile platforms. The division of CBS owns and operates 126 stations in 27 markets, including all of the Top 10, covering news, sports, talk, rock, country, Top 40, classic hits, and urban formats, among others. CBS RADIO also reaches audiences through CBS Sports Radio, Radio.com and CBS Local Digital Media.
About CBS EcoMedia Inc.
At EcoMedia, we're propelled by the desire to create positive social change; that's been our mission since we founded the company in 2002. In 2010, after successfully partnering with CBS on a wide range of environmental projects, EcoMedia became the newest addition to the CBS Corporation portfolio, exponentially scaling our reach across television, radio, interactive, publishing and outdoor media.
Through our patent-pending EcoAd, WellnessAd and EducationAd programs, an innovative twist on traditional advertising, advertisers are able to support much-needed local projects which in turn creates jobs, saves taxpayer money and improves the quality of life in communities nationwide. In the process, we’re fundamentally altering the advertising landscape, elevating the ordinary, traditional commercial – and media, in general – into a catalyst for tangible, quantifiable social change. Please visit ecomedia.cbs.com to learn more.
By participating in EcoMedia’s EcoAd, WellnessAd and EducationAd advertising programs, EcoMedia’s advertisers agree to provide funding for projects we believe will have a beneficial effect upon the environment, health and/or education within local communities. EcoMedia’s advertising programs are not certification programs nor are the EcoAd, WellnessAd or EducationAd logos seals of approval. EcoMedia does not in any way certify, endorse or make any representations about EcoMedia program advertisers, their products or services.
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Press Contacts:
Katelyn Yoshimoto
Blessings in a Backpack
312-573-5492
katelyn_yoshimoto@jtpr.com
Karen Mateo
CBS RADIO
212-649-9639
karen.mateo@cbsradio.com
Janice Sakamoto
CBS EcoMedia
310-374-8212
janice.sakamoto@ecomediacbs.com
