Easter Seals Receives $47,110 to Make the First Five Count for Young Kids with Disabilities and Developmental Delays

The Northwestern Mutual Foundation Donates $200,000 to Help Future Generations

CHICAGO, Aug. 24, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Easter Seals, the nation's leading non-profit provider of services for individuals with autism, developmental disabilities, physical disabilities and other special needs, today announced that it received a grant totaling $47,110 through the Northwestern Mutual Foundation's Click for Kids program, a Facebook-driven campaign that launched earlier this summer. The funding will support Easter Seals' Make the First Five Count initiative, a program designed to get children at risk of developmental delays or disabilities the right support they need to be school-ready and build a foundation for a lifetime of learning. Click for Kids donated a total gift of $200,000 to three best-in-class nonprofits, all dedicated to supporting children.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110401/MM76153LOGO)

"Every year, we as a nation fail to identify 1.5 million children under the age of five with autism, disabilities or developmental delays," says James E. Williams, Jr., president and chief executive officer of Easter Seals. "Easter Seals is working to change that, and the Northwestern Mutual Foundation's Click For Kids grant will significantly help us."

Easter Seals, along with Action for Healthy Kids and Teach For America, was selected by the Northwestern Mutual Foundation to benefit from the Click for Kids program due to its dedication to supporting children with special needs. The Click for Kids program highlighted the impact each nonprofit is having on a child, family and the community, while raising dollars.  Participants visited Northwestern Mutual's Facebook page, viewed a short video and voted for one of the three best-in-class nonprofits. For each vote cast, the Northwestern Mutual Foundation gave $10 to the selected nonprofit. During the length of the campaign, 4,711 votes were cast in support of Easter Seals.

"We are very pleased to help strengthen Easter Seals, Action for Healthy Kids and Teach For America. The Northwestern Mutual Foundation partners with best-in-class community organizations to make an impact in children's lives. The Click for Kids campaign allowed us to dedicate resources to these three nonprofits, and bring the exceptional work they do for children to the forefront," said Kimberley Goode, president, Northwestern Mutual Foundation.

Multimedia: Watch Click for Kids Videos

• Click for Kids introductory video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J01Hr2fFJG4
• Easter Seals video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oKgu3pqem3o

About Easter Seals
Easter Seals is the leading non-profit provider of services for individuals with autism, developmental disabilities, physical disabilities and other special needs. For more than 90 years, we have been offering help and hope to children and adults living with disabilities, and to the families who love them. Through therapy, training, education and support services, Easter Seals creates life-changing solutions so that people with disabilities can live, learn, work and play. Visit www.easterseals.com or http://www.makethefirstfivecount.org/.

About the Northwestern Mutual Foundation
The mission of the Northwestern Mutual Foundation is to build strong, vibrant communities that serve as a legacy to future generations. The Foundation's giving is designed to create an impact on the communities where the company's employees and financial representatives live and work. In fiscal year 2011, the Foundation contributed more than $16 million to nonprofit organizations across the country.

SOURCE Easter Seals