CDW and Louisiana Association of Business & Industry Teamed Up to Drive Grant Fundraising for Gulf-Area Small Businesses, But More Corporate Support is Needed.
May 10, 2006; 01:58 AM
METAIRIE, La. - CDW Corporation (NASDAQ: CDWC)
together with the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry (LABI)
today announced that donations from the company's grant fundraising
effort, "Small Business Reboot," have resulted in more than $1 million
being raised for the Small Business Disaster Relief Fund. Founded by
the LABI, the Fund provides grants to help rebuild small businesses in
the four states most affected by hurricanes Katrina and Rita – Alabama,
Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas.
This morning, CDW presented a $350,000 check,
representing a matching donation, to LABI. CDW's "Small Business
Reboot" is a challenge-match program designed to encourage companies
around the nation to contribute to the Fund to help small businesses.
On top of CDW's initial outright donation of $350,000 in December, CDW
matched the next $350,000 in other businesses' donations
dollar-for-dollar, bringing the total small business grants available
from the effort to more than $1 million. Since "Small Business
Reboot's" launch in December, the initiative has helped more than 200
Gulf-Area-based small business companies rebuild their facilities and
infrastructure.
CDW took a hands-on approach to helping the Gulf
Coast after the hurricanes affected the region. Rather than having the
company's annual holiday party in December, CDW coworkers voted to use
the budget towards the Gulf Coast rebuilding efforts. Aside from
funding the "Small Business Reboot" program, money from the company's
canceled holiday party is being used to send company coworkers to the
Gulf Region to provide hands-on help with relief efforts. CDW is in the
midst of sending 80 coworkers over a four week period (April 23 to May
17) to the New Orleans area to help clear debris in St. Bernard Parish,
which was completely devastated by flooding from Hurricane Katrina.
"In addition to donating food, technology and
time to the Gulf region, we believed it was also important to provide
grant money to help restart small businesses of the area, since they
are the backbone of the American economy," said John Edwardson,
chairman and chief executive officer of CDW. "At CDW, we believe in the
power of small businesses. So we continue to urge other American
corporations to join us in going beyond humanitarian relief to also
help small businesses recover. By supporting these small businesses, we
are honoring their everyday hard work and recognizing the critical role
they play in a region's economic viability. There are enormous needs
still unmet, but American corporations can collectively make an impact
that will pay dividends for the entire nation down the road."
In the eight months since hurricanes Katrina and
Rita devastated the Gulf Coast, the region remains beset by its
shattered infrastructure and slow pace of recovery. There are still
thousands of residents without homes and small business owners are
impacted two-fold by overall economic issues that are currently
affecting small business owners, such as increasing energy prices and
costs of materials, as well as their own rebuilding efforts. To date,
LABI has received over 5,000 applications from small businesses
requesting grants and has received funding to award 200 grants totaling
$1.5 million.
"We see an overwhelming need for financial
support for small business owners, many of whom who lost both their
businesses and their homes from these devastating storms," said Daniel
Juneau, president of LABI. "CDW's ‘Small Business Reboot' initiative
provided tremendous monetary benefits to small businesses that are
working hard to overcome the economic hardships they have endured over
the past eight months. While the company's generosity has had a
significant impact in supporting small business reconstruction efforts,
we urge other American corporations to help in the cause."
According to LABI, the Small Business Disaster
Relief Fund is the only grant program in the Gulf region actively
supported by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the National Association of
Manufacturers, the National Small Business Association, and the
National Federation of Independent Business.
More information about CDW's "Small Business Reboot" is available at
www.labi.org or http://www.cdw.com/reboot, including information on how
businesses can donate to the "Small Business Reboot" campaign.
About CDW
CDW®
ranked No. 343 on the FORTUNE 500, is a leading provider of technology
solutions for business, government and education. CDW is a principal
source of technology products and services including top name brands
such as Adobe, Apple, Cisco, HP, IBM, Lenovo, Microsoft, Sony,
Symantec, and Toshiba.
CDW was founded in 1984 and employs
approximately 4,350 coworkers. In 2005, the company generated sales of
$6.3 billion. CDW's direct model offers one-on-one relationships with
knowledgeable account managers; purchasing by telephone, fax, the
company's award-winning CDW.com web site, customized CDW@work™
extranets, CDWG.com Web site and macwarehouse.com Web site; custom
configured solutions and same day shipping; and pre- and post-sales
technical support, with approximately 120 factory-trained and A+
certified technicians on staff.
About LABI
LABI was
founded 30 years ago to serve as Louisiana's state chamber of commerce
and manufacturing association. The member-supported organization's
mission is to foster a climate for economic growth by championing the
principles of the free enterprise system and representing the general
interests of Louisiana's business community. With more than 3,500
members, of which more than 80 percent are small businesses, LABI is
the state's premier business association. More information on LABI is
available at www.labi.org.
Mark Spencer, Burson-Marsteller for CDW, 312.596.3628, [email protected] |
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