Kroger Introduces New $1.5 Million Donation Program to Support Schools, Nonprofits, and Faith-based Organizations in Texas and Louisiana

HOUSTON, Aug. 21, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Kroger takes pride in being a community partner and aligning with causes that are important to local neighborhoods and shoppers. Kroger is committed to building relationships with organizations that enrich the lives of others with a focus on hunger relief, education, diversity, and health and wellness. To increase the number of charities that the company assists and reaches in Texas and Louisiana, the new Kroger Community Rewards® program invites local schools, nonprofits and faith-based organizations to enroll in the program to benefit from monetary donations four times per year.

"Kroger has longstanding roots in our Texas and Louisiana markets. To us, local means helping the communities we serve prosper," says Bill Breetz, president of the Kroger Southwest Division. "Locally, we serve more than 1.6 million households weekly. I know we have the ability to affect each of those families by providing job opportunities, a rewarding shopping experience, customer service, great food, low prices, and support to the charities they consider important. The Kroger Community Rewards® program makes it easy for organizations to raise money and empowers our shoppers to get involved in a philanthropic act."

Any charity interested in signing up for the Kroger Community Rewards® program must submit a one-time digital application. After approval, an organization encourages their supporters and clients to link their Kroger Plus Cards to the group's participant number. Once supporters have registered their Kroger Plus Cards to a participating organization, each time they shop at Kroger, a portion of their purchase benefits their charity of choice.

For the 2013-2014 period, more than 1,000 organizations are already enrolled. New applications are being processed and approved daily. Current enrolled charities represent a variety of categories including churches; youth development programs; hunger-relief missions; community development; foundations; sports; environmental protection; arts societies; special needs services; health and wellness; animal care; senior citizens;  booster clubs; and PTAs and PTOs.

Over the past five years, Kroger awarded $5 million to thousands of Texas and Louisiana organizations through its previous Neighbor-to-Neighbor program. To complete a participant application for Kroger Community Rewards or to register a Kroger Plus Card to a charity, visit www.krogercommunityrewards.com.

About Kroger – The Kroger Southwest Division operates 211 stores, 202 pharmacies and 113 fuel centers in Texas and Louisiana and is part of one of the nation's largest retail grocery chains serving customers in 31 states. For more than 125 years, Kroger has emphasized a customer-first approach to providing quality products, value pricing, outstanding service and an exceptional shopping experience. Headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, the supermarket retailer is dedicated to making a difference in the communities it serves by supporting hunger relief, education, health and wellness, and diversity programs. Resulting from the retailer's philanthropic commitment, Forbes magazine lists Kroger as the most generous company in America. For more information about Kroger, please visit www.kroger.com, Facebook or Twitter.

CONTACTS:
Kristal Howard
[email protected]
713-507-6191 direct; 713-299-6863 cell

Joy Partain
[email protected]
(713) 507-4809 direct; (713) 498-4399 cell

SOURCE Kroger