National Parks America Tour Gathers Volunteer Troops to Fulfill Work
Southern California Volunteers Appreciated at Great American Picnic
YUCCA VALLEY, CA (April 9, 2005): More than 200 volunteers rolled up their sleeves Saturday, April 9, 2005 at Joshua Tree National Park enabling the park to complete important projects, including nature trail clean up, exotic weed pulling, working on a split-railed fence and other beautification projects. The National Parks America Tour welcomed Wal-Mart Associates, Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, Boys and Girls volunteers and area community school groups from the Southern California-area. Joshua Tree National Park was selected to host one of 26 National Parks America Tour events held in 2005, welcoming community, service and school groups in service-to-the-land volunteer projects.
“This is the second year that Joshua Tree National Park has hosted a National Parks America Tour event,” commented Curt Sauer, Park Superintendent. “The benefits of volunteer power are seen throughout the park. Much of the work that volunteers accomplish could simply not be done with only our present park staff.”
The National Parks America Tour is a volunteer-driven initiative designed to provide National Parks with manpower resources to complete important projects and engage communities in the National Park experience. Sponsored by Unilever, the National Park Foundation, Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. and Take Pride in America, the National Parks America Tour projects to donate more than 100,000 volunteer manpower hours to the National Park Service each year resulting in an in-kind donation of $1.6 million.
“The National Parks America Tour fits squarely into the Wal-Mart’s Good.Works. program which is designed to dedicate resources, time and energy to programs centered on Children, Community, Education and Environment,” commented Dave Simmons, District Manager, Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. “The National Parks America Tour fosters community stewardship as customers of all ages work side-by-side with Wal-Mart Associates making a difference today to sustain parks for tomorrow.”
The National Parks America Tour helps communicate the diverse landscape and cultural resources protected by the National Park service providing direct links between local area National Parks and renowned sites.
As the longest-standing corporate partner and a Proud Partner of the National Park Foundation, Unilever’s commitment spans more than eleven years and $24 million in donations and support. Unilever’s recent four-year Proud Partner commitment will donate an additional $22 million in donations and in-kind support to the National Parks.
The National Park Foundation, chartered by Congress in 1967, strengthens the enduring connection between the American people and their National Park. For more information, please visit www.nationalparks.org.
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About Unilever
Unilever [NYSE: UL, UN], one of the world’s largest consumer products companies, aims to add vitality to life by meeting everyday needs for nutrition, hygiene and personal care. Each day, around the world, consumers make 150 million decisions to purchase Unilever products. The company has a portfolio of brands that make people feel good, look good and get more out of life.
In the United States these brands include recognized names such as: Axe, “all,” Ben & Jerrys, Bertolli, Breyers, Caress, Country Crock, Degree, Dove personal care products, Eternity by Calvin Klein, Hellmanns, Lipton, Knorr, Popsicle, Promise, Q-Tips, Skippy, Slim-Fast, Snuggle, Suave and Vaseline. All of the preceding brand names are registered trademarks of Unilever. Dedicated to serving consumers and the communities where we live, work and play, Unilever in the United States employs more than 15,000 people in 74 office and manufacturing sites in 24 states and Puerto Rico – generating approximately $10 billion in sales in 2004. For more information visit www.unilever.com.
About Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. operates Wal-Mart Stores, Supercenters, Neighborhood Markets and SAMS CLUB locations in the United States. Internationally, the company operates in Argentina, Brazil, Canada, China, Germany, Japan, Mexico, Puerto Rico, South Korea and the United Kingdom. The companys securities are listed on the New York and Pacific stock exchanges under the symbol WMT. More information about Wal-Mart can be found by visiting www.walmartfacts.com. Online merchandise sales are available at www.walmart.com.