Community Relations Specialist

Contact:

 Melinda Rice

BJ’s Wholesale Club, Inc.

 216.269.2143

 mrice@bjs.com

BJ’s Charitable Foundation Grants $87,500 to Ohio Charitable Organizations

14 Local Nonprofits Awarded Grants to Assist in Providing Services to Those in Need

BJ’s Charitable Foundation today announced a donation of $87,500 to 14 charitable organizations in Ohio.  The Foundation disperses funds to organizations focused on hunger prevention, self sufficiency, healthcare and education.  The grants in Ohio are part of the Foundation’s quarterly cycle to provide donations to charitable organizations in the 15 states where BJ’s Wholesale Clubs are located. In all, BJ’s Charitable Foundation donated a total of $1,689,150 to 265 nonprofit charitable organizations across its footprint during this grant cycle. 

“The BJ’s Charitable Foundation is dedicated to supporting the communities surrounding our Clubs,” said Melinda Rice, Community Relations Specialist at BJ’s Wholesale Club. “We hope these donations benefit individuals and families and enable organizations to continue to provide crucial services to those in need.”

Since its inception in 2005, the BJ’s Charitable Foundation has donated nearly $16 million to over 1,800 community organizations. The noted organizations receiving grants from BJ’s Charitable Foundation submitted proposals in January, April and July of 2012. All recipients are 501(c)3 charitable organizations that support services in the regions where BJ’s Wholesale Clubs are located.

Ohio grantees include:

Hunger Prevention

• Neighborhood Alliance, Elyria, OH - $5,000 in support of the Haven Center Homeless Shelter Program, giving shelter and meals for men, women and children.
• Mobile Meals, Inc., Akron, OH - $15,000 in support of the Meals and Supplements for Children and Adults Unable to Pay Program to provide meals and supplements to children, disabled individuals and the elderly.
• Akron Canton Regional Foodbank, Akron, OH - $10,000 in support of the Transportation Program for the Foodbank, distributing emergency food to the community’s most vulnerable citizens.  
• Cleveland Foodbank, Inc., Cleveland, OH - $10,000 to purchase food for the Foodbank's Children's Nutrition Initiative program, which addresses the issue of inadequate nutrition among families with low incomes by introducing young children to healthy eating habits while providing them with critical meals.

Education

• Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Cleveland, Cleveland, OH - $5,000 in support of the School Based Mentoring Program -- an on-site program that matches adult volunteers with children in an academic setting.

Self-Sufficiency

• Trillium Family Solutions, Canton, OH - $5,000 in support of the StarkWORKS Program providing free employment preparation services to qualifying individuals.
• Cogswell Hall, Inc., Cleveland, OH - $4,000 to purchase food for the Cogswell Hall Food and Nutrition program.
• Merrick House, Cleveland, OH - $5,000 in support of the Teen and Adult Education Program, which serves teens and adults to provides individualized instruction beginning with improving low reading and math skills and advancing to passing the GED examination.
• Rebuilding Together Summit County, Inc., Akron, OH - $10,000 in the support of the Safe at Home program, which makes needed repairs and modifications on behalf of homeowners to improve their living conditions, reduce housing costs and increase their independence.
• Mature Services, Inc., Akron, OH - $2,000 to purchase equipment to provide in-home cleaning for seniors and adults with chronic health conditions and physical disabilities for the Homecare: Chore Program.

Healthcare

• University Hospitals Health System, Inc., Chardon, OH - $4,000 to purchase audiometers for the "I Can't Hear You" Community Hearing Screening Program.
• North Coast Health Ministry, Lakewood, OH - $5,000 in support of the Medical Supply Assistance Program, giving medical supplies to patients with chronic diseases such as diabetes and asthma. 
• Achievement Centers for Children, Highland Hills, OH - $2,500 to purchase equipment and speech therapy educational items for the Therapy Equipment for Children with Disabilities Program.
• University Hospitals, Cleveland, OH - $5,000 in support of the Pregnancy Outcomes and Empowering Women Program, providing prenatal care to young women with multiple barriers to care.

About BJ’s Charitable Foundation

BJ’s Charitable Foundation was established with the mission to enrich every community BJ’s Wholesale Clubs serve.  The Foundation supports nonprofit organizations that primarily benefit the underprivileged in the area of basic needs (hunger prevention, self-sufficiency, education and health).  For more information about BJ’s Charitable Foundation, please visit, www.bjs.com/charity