Walmart Announces a New Customer Campaign to Assist with 2017 U.S. Hurricane Relief

BENTONVILLE, Ark., September 11, 2017/3BL Media/ – In response to the severe weather impacting the country, Walmart is committing up to $10 million in additional support for 2017 U.S. hurricane relief efforts. This will bring the total committed by Walmart to hurricane relief efforts this year to $30 million, building on the support provided in response to Hurricane Harvey that hit the Gulf region two-and-a-half weeks ago.

“We know our associates and customers make the difference. And once again, when needed the most, they are stepping up to help in a major way,” said Kathleen McLaughlin, president of the Walmart Foundation and chief sustainability officer for Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. “This is about neighbors helping neighbors and we will continue to be there for the communities we serve as they recover.”

With devastating storms and flooding hitting the United States, and building on the response to raise funds for Hurricane Harvey, Walmart is launching a new customer campaign with the American Red Cross to assist with hurricane relief more broadly. As part of this new effort, Walmart will match customer donations two-to-one with cash and product donations of up to $10 million to support American Red Cross disaster-response efforts. These donations will help those impacted by hurricanes in 2017 by providing shelter, food, comfort and emergency assistance.

Walmart continues to respond in the areas of greatest need throughout the country during this year’s hurricane season. 

• Our first priority is, and continues to be, the safety of our associates. We’re taking care of our associates and their families by communicating with our store and club location management teams, reminding our associates of emergency procedures and what to do during and after the storm.
• Supporting our associates who have been impacted with access to earned-wage and disaster-support assistance, setting up support centers in the impacted areas, providing hot meals to families and proactively calling associates to conduct wellness checks.
• Our Walmart and Sam's Club pharmacies are dedicated to providing prescriptions and immunizations to our customers during and after this emergency. Our pharmacies will be open as long as conditions are safe for our customers and associates and we are working with our suppliers to help stay in stock. We are prepared to open up as soon as possible so that we can support our communities in the affected area. We will also work with patients who might be displaced or have previously received prescriptions from another pharmacy. 
• Working to quickly reopen our affected stores and club locations in impacted areas to serve communities. 
• Centralizing relief efforts through the Walmart Emergency Operations Center (EOC) which operates 24 hours a day tracking storm impacts and supporting our associates needs and well-being. The EOC also facilitates store recovery, and is supporting community relief efforts in the impacted regions. This includes shipments of emergency supplies to multiple shelter operations.
• Shipping more than 1,700 truckloads of emergency merchandise and water to customers in need, including cleaning supplies, pet food, batteries, diapers, baby formula, hand sanitizer, first aid supplies, fans, generators, candles, flashlights, propane, rainwear, tarps, gas cans and related items.
• Activating emergency support teams dedicated to helping our stores and club locations during critical events such as this one and providing subject-matter experts in logistics and emergency management to assist local emergency operations centers.

Walmart has a long history of providing aid in times of disasters, helping communities prepare and recover by donating emergency supplies, such as food and water along with home and personal products. Aside from amounts committed in response to this year’s hurricane season, Walmart and the Walmart Foundation have donated more than $60 million in cash and in-kind donations in response to disaster events since 2005.

Customer Campaign Details
During the campaign, customers can donate to the American Red Cross at registers in Walmart stores and Sam’s Clubs or on Walmart.com and Samsclub.com. By texting SUPPORT to 90999 customers also have the option to donate $10 via their wireless carrier.* For every $1 donated, Walmart will contribute $2 worth of cash or, at Walmart’s option, needed product to the American Red Cross, up to $10 million. Walmart’s product contributions will be valued at Walmart’s cost. The campaign will run from September 10, 2017 through September 16, 2017.

*A one-time $10.00 donation will be added to your mobile bill or deducted from your prepaid balance. All donations must be authorized by account holder. Must be 18 or older or have parental permission to participate. Message and data rates may apply. Text STOP to 90999 to STOP. Text HELP to 90999 for HELP. Full Terms and Privacy Policy: hmgf.org/t.

About Walmart
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT) helps people around the world save money and live better - anytime and anywhere - in retail stores, online, and through their mobile devices 260 million customers and members visit our more than 11,600 stores under 59 banners in 28 countries and e-commerce websites in 11 countries. With fiscal year 2017 revenue of $485.9 billion, Walmart employs approximately 2.3 million associates worldwide. Walmart continues to be a leader in sustainability, corporate philanthropy and employment opportunity. Additional information about Walmart can be found by visiting http://corporate.walmart.com, on Facebook at http://facebook.com/walmart and on Twitter at http://twitter.com/walmart.

About Philanthropy at Walmart 
By using our strengths to help others, Walmart and the Walmart Foundation create opportunities for people to live better every day. Walmart has stores in 28 countries, employing more than 2.4 million associates and doing business with thousands of suppliers who, in turn, employ millions of people. Our philanthropy helps people live better by supporting upward job mobility and economic development for the retail workforce; addressing hunger and making healthier, more sustainably-grown food a reality; and building strong communities where Walmart operates and inspiring our associates to give back. Whether it is helping to lead the fight against hunger in the United States with $2 billion in cash and in-kind donations or supporting Women’s Economic Empowerment through a series of grants totaling $10 million to the Women in Factories training program in Bangladesh, China, India and Central America, Walmart and the Walmart Foundation are not only working to tackle key social issues, we are also collaborating with others to inspire solutions for long-lasting systemic change. To learn more about Walmart’s giving, visit http://www.foundation.walmart.com.