CITGO Employees Raise Funds and Awareness for the American Heart Association
CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – Feb. 10, 2016 /3BL Media/ – According to the American Heart Association, cardiovascular disease kills 17.3 million people every year. To help curb this statistic, volunteers from the CITGO Corpus Christi Refinery raised money for the local chapter of the American Heart Association, joining their neighbors for the 11th consecutive year in the organization’s annual Heart Walk. This event raises funds for the American Heart Association, while increasing awareness for this deadly disease.
“Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death globally. Our goal is to reduce death and disability from heart disease and stroke 20 percent by 2020, but in order to reach that goal, it is critical that we have strong allies in this battle,” said Erin Wilder, executive director of the Corpus Christi American Heart Association. “CITGO and its employees have been tremendous supporters for over a decade and we are grateful for their contributions.”
Designed to promote physical activity and heart-healthy living in a fun and family-friendly environment, the Heart Walk is the American Heart Association’s premiere event for raising funds to save lives from heart disease and stroke, two of the United States’ top five killers. CITGO has been an active supporter of the Corpus Christi American Heart Association since 2004, sponsoring events like the Heart Walk and the annual Heart Ball. This year, the CITGO team joined more than 1 million walkers participating in nearly 340 Heart Walk events nationwide.
“For more than eight decades, the CITGO Corpus Christi Refinery has prided itself on helping improve the health of our community through programs and organizations like Charlie’s Place, Camp Aranzazu and the Corpus Christi NAACP Citywide Health Fair,” said CITGO Corpus Christi Refinery Vice President and General Manager Art Klein, citing the refinery’s 80 years in the Coastal Bend. “Partnering with the Corpus Christi American Heart Association allows us to promote awareness of and raise support for invaluable heart disease and stroke research.”
About the CITGO Corpus Christi Refinery
The CITGO Corpus Christi Refinery, which celebrated 80 years of operations in 2015, provides more than 1,000 jobs locally, while generating more than $345 million per year in support of the local economy through salaries, services and taxes. In addition to producing high-quality fuels for its network of nearly 5,500 independently owned and operated CITGO branded stations across the country, Corpus Christi refinery employees make a major positive impact on the community. In 2015 alone, CITGO employees in Corpus Christi volunteered more than 2,900 hours of their personal time to local and national charities. Over the last three years, the CITGO Corpus Christi Refinery and its employees have provided more than 10,000 volunteer hours and approximately $3.3 million in support of community organizations such as United Way, Charlie's Place, Muscular Dystrophy Association, The Miracle League, Catholic Charities, the Special Olympics and a variety of environmental and preservation initiatives, such as the revitalization of the Gateway to Corpus Christi, Hans and Pat Suter Park and Adopt-A-Beach Clean Up. For more information on the CITGO Corpus Christi Refinery, visit www.citgorefining.com/corpus-christi.
About CITGO
CITGO, based in Houston, is a refiner, transporter and marketer of transportation fuels, lubricants, petrochemicals and other industrial products. The company is owned by CITGO Holding, Inc., an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A., the national oil company of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela. For more information, visit www.CITGO.com.
