ITC Donates More than $1 Million to Charitable Organizations in 2016

Donations promote education, social services, health and sustainability

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Dec 27, 2016, 06:45 ET

NOVI, Mich., Dec. 27, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- ITC Holdings Corp. and its 660 employees donated more than $1 million to 79 charitable organizations throughout its footprint in 2016. The nation's largest independent electricity transmission company provides donations to deserving nonprofits whose programs share ITC's values. Highlights of ITC's 2016 charitable giving program include:

ITC Michigan: The company and its 543 employees in the state donated more than $624 thousand to 38 charitable organizations. Among them:

Kids' Food Basket, a Grand Rapids-based organization which serves nearly 7,500 kids each weekday in West Michigan with sack suppers – well-rounded, nutritious evening meals – to attack childhood hunger to help young people learn and live well. ITC awarded a charitable grant to Kids' Food Basket, and company employees and contractors donated food, decorated sack supper bags, and helped pack the bags.
Focus: HOPE Village Freedom School in Detroit received an ITC grant as the final funding necessary to launch the HOPE Village Freedom School in June 2016. Conducted in partnership with the Children's Defense Fund, HOPE Village Freedom School is based on a national model of classroom programs to promote literacy and academic success. Click here to view a video about ITC's partnership with the HOPE Village Freedom School.

ITC Midwest: The company and its 101 employees based in Iowa and Minnesota donated more than $133 thousand to 16 charitable organizations, including:

Make-A-Wish® Iowa grants the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions to enrich the human experience with hope, strength and joy. The Iowa chapter's foundation has granted wishes to more than 3,000 children with life-threatening medical conditions since 1987 and currently grants a wish in Iowa about every other day. Click here to view a video about ITC's partnership with Make-A-Wish Iowa.
Strands of Strength, based in Cedar Rapids, Iowa provides wigs free of charge to needy women suffering hair loss due to cancer treatment. The wigs offered by Strands of Strength disguise hair loss, hopefully to decrease feelings of vulnerability and provide greater self-esteem, resulting in the personal strength needed to successfully battle the disease.

ITC Great Plains: The company and its 16 employees based in Kansas and Oklahoma donated more than $130 thousand to 17 charitable organizations, including:

National Orphan Train Complex, based in Concordia, Kansas consists of a museum and research center dedicated to the preservation of the stories and artifacts of those who were part of the Orphan Train Movement from 1854-1929. The National Orphan Train Complex collects, preserves, interprets and disseminates knowledge about the orphan trains and the children and agents who rode them in an effort to preserve the region's heritage for future generations.
Sand County Foundation's Oklahoma Leopold Conservation Award program recognizes agricultural landowners who have made extraordinary achievements in voluntary conservation, environmental stewardship and management of natural resources. In addition, the program works to build bridges between agriculture, government, environmental organizations, industry and academia promote the conservation of private lands.

In addition to these regional contributions, ITC donated to charitable organizations such as the American Heart Association and the American Cancer Society at a national level through corporate giving in 2016 and supported disaster recovery efforts across its footprint by contributing to the following activities:

Donation to help Flint, Mich. families recover from the water crisis.
Donation to H.U.G.S. Ranch, Byron Center, Mich., a therapeutic horse ranch for children, to help rebuild after a tornado struck the area.

Through its charitable giving activities, ITC awards grants to qualified 501 (c) (3) organizations focused on social services, education, health and wellness, environmental stewardship, and arts and culture that deliver charitable services in the counties where ITC operates. Sources of ITC's contributions include special grants, individual executives, charitable outings, and casual dress days. Since 2010, ITC has donated more than $5.2 million to deserving nonprofits throughout its footprint, including organizations in Michigan, Iowa, Minnesota, Oklahoma and Kansas.

"Giving back is part of ITC's company culture," said Donna Zalewski, director, Local Government & Community Affairs and Philanthropy, ITC Holdings Corp. "These and other deserving organizations work tirelessly to improve our communities, and we are proud to support each and every one of them."

For more information about ITC's charitable giving program or to apply for a grant, visit http://www.itc-holdings.com/community-approach/philanthropy.

About ITC Holdings Corp.
ITC, a Fortis company, is the largest independent electric transmission company in the United States. Based in Novi, Michigan, ITC invests in the electric transmission grid to improve reliability, expand access to markets, allow new generating resources to interconnect to its transmission systems and lower the overall cost of delivered energy. Through its regulated operating subsidiaries ITCTransmission, Michigan Electric Transmission Company, ITC Midwest and ITC Great Plains, ITC owns and operates high-voltage transmission facilities in Michigan, Iowa, Minnesota, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas and Oklahoma, serving a combined peak load exceeding 26,000 megawatts along approximately 15,800 circuit miles of transmission line with 660 employees and nearly 1,000 contractors across its seven state footprint. ITC's grid development focus includes growth through regulated infrastructure investment as well as domestic and international expansion through merchant and other commercial development opportunities. ITC Holdings Corp. common shares are owned 80.1% by Fortis Inc. and 19.9% by GIC Private Limited. Additional information can be accessed at www.itc-holdings.com.