Investor News

One Ford Helping One world

DEARBORN, Mich., Sept. 10, 2010 – Shovels and loppers, hammers and drills are the tools of the trade for the Ford Volunteer Corps. More than 12,000 Ford employee and retiree volunteers stepped away from their computers and meeting rooms, and went to work in their communities during the 5th annual Ford Global Week of Caring. Ford volunteers in more than 40 countries from Africa and Asia, to Europe and the Americas made a world of difference for people in need.

In the United States, dozens of Ford MODEL Teams tackled community building projects in 15 states. Ford provided more than $60,000 to purchase tools and materials needed to complete much of the work. Ford volunteers helped paint and renovate shelters, tackled water and landscaping projects, and at the Vista Maria center for girls, volunteers built new patios for the residents to enjoy with family and friends.

"It gets people out and you feel like you've made a difference at the end of the day," said Kevin Buchlan, product design engineer, Powertrain Operations. "All the organizations appreciate us."

View a Global Week of Caring Photo Gallery on Flickr.

"Ford has been a wonderful asset for us," said Wendy Kearney, manager, Volunteer Resources, Vista Maria. "Their volunteers are on time, ready to work and willing to do whatever we need them to do."

Since 2005, the Ford Volunteer Corps has been the face of Ford in communities around the globe. Each year more than 20,000 Ford employees and retirees join Model Teams to support community projects. During this Ford Global Week of Caring, volunteers helped create a better world with nearly 200 projects on six continents, including:

• More than 1,000 volunteers in India performed community service at libraries and schools
• Hunger relief and home building were among more than a dozen projects in Argentina and Brazil
• Volunteers painted a school for disabled children and landscaped a mental health facility in the U.K.
• They put up portable buildings to aid disadvantaged families in Australia
• Volunteers worked at nature reserves and schools in South Africa
• They built a drinking water well in Ghana
• Cleaned beaches and helped build libraries in China.

Ford Global Week of Caring is one special week of community service, but Ford volunteers are active year round. They pull together to help strengthen communities and also realize benefits back at the workplace.

"It's team building, and as a group we work well together," said Chris Williams, calibration engineer, Powertrain Operations. "And we get to see who can actually use a hand tool and who can't."

"You get a whole new perspective on people," said Janet Dutkewych, product market analyst. "Let's face it. What really matters is your community and any way we can help is a wonderful thing."

MODEL Teams will form once again on November 12 for a Ford Accelerated Action Day to benefit veterans and their families.