Arthur Blank Family Foundation

ATLANTA, October 6, 2005 The Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation today announced it is contributing $700,000 to United Way of Metropolitan Atlanta to help support Hurricane Katrina relief and resettlement efforts.

Georgia has already become the temporary home to tens of thousands of evacuees from Hurricane Katrina, many of whom will need resettlement help for several months or longer.

"We want to do our part to provide for hurricane victims and support the United Way as it helps our region and state respond in a coordinated manner to the longer-term needs of people displaced by the storm," said Blank Foundation President Penelope McPhee. "As a community, we’re doubly challenged right now to support relief efforts while making sure we don’t lose ground with the important work that was under way before Katrina hit."

United Way has estimated it will require $10 million locally to address storm victim needs in housing, employment, child care, communications, elder care and emergency programs.

Today's announcement follows several initiatives undertaken throughout the Blank family of businesses in the aftermath of the hurricane.

$355,000 has been donated to the American Red Cross by associates from the Atlanta Falcons, Georgia Force Arena Football Club, Mountain Sky Guest Ranch, AMB Group, LLC, and The Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation.
$16,000 was raised through Falcons 365 retail store sales donations.
$100,000 was collected from fans at the Falcons-Eagles Monday Night Football season opener on September 12, benefiting the Red Cross and Salvation Army.
$32,000 was raised for the Red Cross at the Atlanta Falcons Kickoff Luncheon on August 31.
$5,000 was committed by the Mountain Sky Guest Ranch Fund. This fund, which contributes to neighboring Park and Gallatin counties in Montana, is taking five percent of money it would normally award to local community groups and directing it toward hurricane relief.

Some of these donations are being matched through a matching gift program offered to associates of the Blank family of businesses. Including these matching funds, contributions total $760,000. Combined with today’s United Way gift, that number increases to nearly $1.5 million.

Founded in 1995, The Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation is focused on enhancing education, preserving green space, sustaining the arts and sparking collaboration among its nonprofit partners, primarily in Atlanta.

Arthur M. Blank is owner & CEO of the Atlanta Falcons and Georgia Force. He co-founded The Home Depot, the world’s largest home improvement retailer, in 1978 and retired from the company as co-chairman in 2001. Through his generosity, the foundation, along with Blank and his wife’s personal giving, has granted over $220 million to various charitable organizations.