Corporations, Foundations and Charitable Organizations Help the American Red Cross Prepare in September and All Year Long

WASHINGTON, Sept. 21, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The declaration of September as National Preparedness Month shines a spotlight on the importance of preparing for disasters. Educational outreach and activities throughout the month aim to raise awareness and help families take steps to prepare their loved ones, homes, schools, businesses and communities for potential emergencies. Helping the American Red Cross stay response ready in September and throughout the year are nearly one hundred organizations, members of the Red Cross Annual Disaster Giving Program (ADGP) and Disaster Responder Program.

Through these giving programs, corporations and foundations pledge donations in advance of major disasters, which provides the Red Cross with a reliable funding base to enable an immediate response.  Their financial support helps the Red Cross preposition people and supplies to support disaster relief activities that include sheltering, feeding, purchasing and distributing relief supplies, storing equipment, providing health and emotional support and reconnecting individuals separated during disasters.

"Every day, the Red Cross works to ensure urgent relief is delivered as quickly as possible and that our teams have the supplies and skills necessary to assist those in need – whether that's a family after a home fire, or a community coping with a natural disaster or other devastating emergency," said Gail McGovern, president and CEO at the American Red Cross. "We are extremely grateful for the generous contributions of our ADGP and Disaster Responder members, which enable us to be on the ground immediately after disaster strikes."

Red Cross staff and volunteers are in their local communities every day, teaching preparedness and other lifesaving skills. ADGP and Disaster Responder members enable the Red Cross to improve community resilience in areas at higher risk for disasters such as hurricanes, wildfires, tornadoes, earthquakes and floods and, most commonly, house fires. To learn what steps to take to be ready if and when emergencies strike, visit redcross.org/prepare.

The generous donations from ADGP and the Disaster Responder Program members enable the American Red Cross to prepare communities for disasters big and small, respond whenever and wherever disasters occur and help families during the recovery process.

ADGP $1 Million members are: American Airlines; Anthem Foundation; Boise Paper; Caterpillar Foundation; Costco Wholesale; Disney; Enterprise Rent-A-Car Foundation; FedEx Corporation; The Home Depot; Humble Bundle; LDS Charities; Lowe's Companies, Inc.; Mazda North American Operations; Merck & Co., Inc.; Nationwide Foundation; State Farm; Target; UPS; VSP℠ Vision care for life; and Walmart.

ADGP $500,000 members are: 3M; Altria Group; American Express; Anheuser-Busch Foundation; Aon; Bank of America; BNY Mellon; Capital One; Cisco Foundation; Citi Foundation; ConAgra Foods Foundation; Darden Restaurants Foundation; Delta Air Lines; Discover; Dr Pepper Snapple Group; Edison International; Ford Motor Company; Grainger; John Deere Foundation; Johnson Controls; Kraft Foods Group Foundation; Medtronic; Meijer; Mondelēz International Foundation; National Grid; PepsiCo Foundation; Prudential Foundation; San Manuel Band of Mission Indians; Southwest Airlines; Sprint; Sunoco; The TJX Companies, Inc.; United Airlines; United Technologies Corporation; Visa; Wawa; and Wells Fargo.

Disaster Responder Program members are: 1-800-BOARDUP; Alcoa; Astellas USA Foundation; AstraZeneca; AT&T; AvalonBay Communities, Inc.; AXA; Ball Foundation; BHP Billiton; The Clorox Company; Entergy Corporation; Farmers Insurance; General Motors Foundation; H&M; Hewlett-Packard Company Foundation; Hi-Rez Studios; IBM Corporation; IKEA; Ingersoll Rand Foundation; Interstate All Battery Center; Land O'Lakes, Inc.; Marsh & McLennan Companies; MetLife Foundation; Morgan Stanley; New Balance Foundation; Northrop Grumman Corporation; Northwestern Mutual and the Northwestern Mutual Foundation; Procter & Gamble Company; PSEG Foundation; PuroClean Disaster Recovery; Residence Inn by Marriott; Ryder; San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E); Southeastern Grocers Home of BI-LO Harveys Winn Dixie; Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Foundation, Inc.; State Street Foundation; Swiss Re Foundation; T O Y O T A; U.S. Bank; and U-Haul International.

About the American Red Cross:
The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disasters; supplies about 40 percent of the nation's blood; teaches skills that save lives; provides international humanitarian aid; and supports military members and their families. The Red Cross is a not-for-profit organization that depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its mission. For more information, please visit redcross.org or visit us on Twitter at @RedCross.

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20090108/RedCrossLOGO

SOURCE American Red Cross