Procter & Gamble Donates $300,000 in Support of NFL PLAY 60 and Youth Health and Wellness

CINCINNATI, Feb. 2, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- As part of its Official NFL sponsorship, Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG) has partnered with NFL PLAY 60, the league's campaign to fight childhood obesity, in an effort to improve the health and wellness of kids across the nation.  Through its season-long support, P&G has donated $300,000, which has helped create health centers, rehabbed playgrounds, purchased sports equipment and helped thousands of children lead happier, healthier lives.  The grand finale came during this past week when P&G presented the NFL PLAY 60 Community Blitz in Hawaii, which included the construction of a brand new playground at the YMCA of Honolulu-Leeward Branch.  P&G continued its support through the 2011 Pro Bowl game with its Touchdowns for Kids cause effort, which provided a $5,000 donation for each touchdown scored in the game and raised more than $100,000 to support youth health and wellness programming at local United Way chapters across the country.

"P&G is proud to have provided season-long support of NFL PLAY 60 to help thousands of kids lead happier, healthier lives," said Anne Westbrook, Corporate Communications Leader, U.S. Sports Marketing at P&G.  "P&G's mission is to touch and improve the lives of our consumers, which is why fighting childhood obesity, which affects one third of our nation's children, is so important to us."

The culmination of P&G's season-long support came with the lead sponsorship of the NFL PLAY 60 Community Blitz in Hawaii during 2011 Pro Bowl week, the largest Pro Bowl service project.  Pro Bowl players, including Saints quarterback Drew Brees and Cowboys tight-end Jason Witten, and community volunteers spent Thursday working to improve the Hawaiian Island of Oahu as part of the Blitz.  Led by KaBOOM!, a national non-profit dedicated to saving play for American's children, the team built a playground at the YMCA of Honolulu-Leeward Branch, which is now complete with a recreational play space, seating area, and an outdoor classroom for local children. At another Blitz site, the Marriott Ihilani Hotel, Special Olympians spent time with players and took part in a special NFL Punt, Pass & Kick competition.  Three other Blitz events took place with youth football, cheerleading and fitness clinics at Hickam Air Force Base/Pearl Harbor, Schofield Army Base and Kaneohe Bay Marine Base.

The support continued into the 2011 Pro Bowl game with P&G's Touchdowns for Kids cause effort where the company awarded a $5,000 donation per touchdown to the local United Way of each scoring player's NFL city to support youth health and wellness programming.  Players scored 13 touchdowns to help P&G donate $65,000 to United Way chapters in Atlanta, Charlotte, Cleveland, Jacksonville, Kansas City, Indianapolis, Minneapolis, Phoenix, St. Louis and Washington D.C.  Donations were also awarded to the remaining 22 NFL markets, bringing the total in-game donation to an estimated $100,000.

P&G began its support of NFL PLAY 60 at the beginning of the season with its Take it to the House campaign, which featured six of P&G's leading brands, including Febreze, Gillette, Head & Shoulders, Old Spice, Prilosec OTC and Vicks.  At the heart of the program was a photo contest on www.facebook.com/TakeItToTheHouse, where consumers were encouraged to post photos of how they celebrate NFL game day at home with their football family.  Each of the eight finalists received a $10,000 donation to support a local youth health and wellness organization, P&G products and an at-home visit from a local NFL legend.  The donations have supported a local park in Pittsburgh, St. Jude's Hospital in Peoria, IL, a high school health and wellness center in Connecticut and many more.

The grand prize winner of the Take it to the House photo contest, Richard Geremia Jr. of Northford, CT, and his family were rewarded with a trip to Hawaii to attend the 2011 Pro Bowl and help continue P&G's support of youth health and wellness by participating in the NFL PLAY 60 Community Blitz.

*NFL Players participation arranged by NFL PLAYERS, the licensing and marketing subsidiary of the NFL Players Association.

About P&G (NYSE: PG)

Four billion times a day, P&G brands touch the lives of people around the world. The company has one of the strongest portfolios of trusted, quality, leadership brands, including Pampers®, Tide®, Ariel®, Always®, Whisper®, Pantene®, Mach3®, Bounty®, Dawn®, Gain®, Pringles®, Charmin®, Downy®, Lenor®, Iams®, Crest®, Oral-B®, Duracell®, Olay®, Head & Shoulders®, Wella®, Gillette®, Braun® and Fusion®. The P&G community includes approximately 135,000 employees working in about 80 countries worldwide. Please visit http://www.pg.com for the latest news and in-depth information about P&G and its brands.

About NFL PLAY 60

Designed to tackle childhood obesity, NFL PLAY 60 brings together the NFL's long-standing commitment to health and fitness with partner organizations like Procter & Gamble. In addition to national outreach and online programs, NFL PLAY 60 is also implemented locally, as part of the NFL's in-school, after-school and team-based programs.  To date, the NFL has dedicated more than $200 million to youth health and wellness through NFL PLAY 60. For more information, visit NFLRush.com.

SOURCE P&G