BERLIN, Conn., April 27, 2013 /PRNewswire/ --Today more than 650 local Comcast Connecticut employees and their families and friends will "make change happen" as they volunteer to improve eight sites across the Nutmeg State as part of Comcast's 12th Comcast Cares Day.
Comcast Cares Day is Comcast and NBCUniversal's signature day of service and the nation's largest single-day corporate volunteer effort. Today Connecticut volunteers will roll their sleeves up at sites in Branford, Groton, Hartford, Middletown, New Haven, Stamford, Waterbury and West Hartford.
This year the Company expects more than 70,000 Comcast volunteers to participate in over 700 projects across the country and internationally. Comcast Cares Day will also go international for the first time with NBCUniversal managing sites in England, France, Germany and New Zealand. Comcast also expects to achieve another important milestone of 3 million volunteer hours and half a million volunteers since Comcast Cares Day started in 2001.
"We're so honored to partner with local Connecticut schools, Boys & Girls Clubs and nonprofit organizations to work together to improve our community during our 12th Comcast Cares Day," said Mary McLaughlin, Comcast Senior Vice President of the Western New England Region, which includes Connecticut "The hard work of the 650 Connecticut volunteers who will be donating their time to help make such a big difference in the lives of others is inspiring, and I am thankful to all of our participants who are helping to make today a success."
The Comcast Cares Day 2013 Connecticut community partners and projects include the following:
- Community Dining Room (Branford) -cleaning, painting, organization and beautification
- Claude Chester Elementary School (Groton) -clean up, mulching, planting, landscaping, painting and school revitalization
- Burns Latino Studies Academy (Hartford) in collaboration with community school partner COMPASS Youth Collaborative -cleanup, landscaping, mulching, rebuilding the children's garden plots, painting, and organization projects. Comcast volunteers will be joined by volunteers from the Urban League of Greater Hartford, United Way of Central and Northeastern Connecticut, Nutmeg Big Brothers Big Sisters and Easter Seals Capital Region & Eastern Connecticut
- MacDonough School (Middletown) - general landscaping and beautification; In partnership with the Middlesex United Way, volunteers will also install a Born Learning Trail, which is a set of fun, physical learning activities that parents or caregivers can play with young children in an outdoor setting, arranged on a walking trail. Volunteers from the North End Action Team and St. John School will join the efforts
- Clinton Avenue School (New Haven) -mulching, landscaping, clean up, beautification and expansion of the school's garden; Student athlete volunteers from Southern Connecticut State University Foundation as well as United Way and Teach for America will also volunteer their time
- Boys & Girls Club of Stamford -planting gardens, clean-up, beautification and reading to and tutoring kids at the Club
- Waterbury Boys & Girls Club - landscaping, gardening, painting and beautification
- Paper Shredding Event with NBC CT (West Hartford) -the public is invited to stop by with up to five boxes of their old documents, which Comcast and NBC CT employee volunteers will help shred for free and make sure they are securely destroyed and recycled.
"The Claude Chester School community is grateful to have all of the volunteers from Comcast, from Claude Chester School, and from other community organizations come to our school to beautify the grounds," said Jamie Giordano, Principal of Claude Chester School. "Because of the volunteer work, we all will be able to enjoy the school's rejuvenated gazebo and picnic area, and students will have fun while using the newly painted playground games. Each time we walk into Claude Chester School past the newly revived Harry Day garden, we will be reminded of and thankful for our partnership with Comcast."
"The Boys & Girls Club of Greater Waterburyis truly grateful for our partnership with Comcast during Comcast Cares Day, as it draws attention to the needs of the community and encourages others to get involved," said John Chiero, Executive Director of the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Waterbury. "I recently read a very simple but profound quote that said, 'A child only grows up once.' We only have one chance to do it right and that is why when organizations like Comcast extend a helping hand it isso important for our children to know that there are people who care about them."
The Comcast Foundation will also provide grants to local community partner organizations across the country on behalf of each employee and family member who volunteers on Comcast Cares Day. The grants will help Comcast's community partners continue their mission of serving the community throughout the year. To date Comcast has committed more than $12 million in grants to organizations nationwide.
Comcast has been committed to serving local communities since our founding 50 years ago. For more information on Comcast's volunteer and community investment initiatives, visit www.comcast.com/community.
About Comcast Corporation
Comcast Corporation (Nasdaq: CMCSA, CMCSK) is a global media and technology company with two primary businesses, Comcast Cable and NBCUniversal. Comcast Cable is the nation's largest video, high-speed Internet and phone provider to residential customers under the XFINITY brand and also provides these services to businesses. NBCUniversal operates 30 news and entertainment cable networks, the NBC and Telemundo broadcast networks, television production operations, television station groups, Universal Pictures and Universal Parks and Resorts. Visit www.comcastcorporation.com for more information.
About the Comcast Foundation
The Comcast Foundation was founded by Comcast Corporation in June 1999 to provide charitable support to qualified non-profit organizations. The Foundation primarily invests in programs intended to have a positive, sustainable impact on their communities. The Foundation has three community investment priorities-promoting service, expanding digital literacy, and building tomorrow's leaders. Since its inception, the Comcast Foundation has donated more than $123 million to organizations in the communities nationwide that Comcast serves. More information about the Foundation and its programs is available at www.comcast.com/community.
SOURCE Comcast Cable
