Community Relations Committees (CRCs) are an integral part of our commitment to corporate citizenship.
Helping Communities
CRCs are located wherever there is a major Ford Motor Company presence. Through CRCs, Ford Motor Company employees provide a local presence and involvement in community programs throughout the United States.
CRC Activities
Through CRCs, our employees have contributed their time and talents to non-profit organizations. We’ve highlighted some of the ways CRCs have benefited their communities below.
Allen Park, Michigan
In 2006, for the eighth year, the Allen Park CRC sponsored the Light the Night walk in Royal Oak, Michigan, which helps improve the odds against blood cancer. Employees participated in the event, raising more than $13,000 toward research into better therapies and cures for leukemia, lymphoma and myeloma.
Atlanta, Georgia
When 17-year-old Joshua Brown’s car began hydroplaning on a wet road in 2003, he did not know what to do. He lost control and died in a single-car crash. To ensure that other young drivers would gain the skills necessary to drive safely, his parents created the Joshua Brown Foundation. The Atlanta CRC was proud to make a contribution and work with the foundation in 2006 as it organized programs, workshops and other efforts to promote driver training.
Also in 2006, the Atlanta CRC and Ford Sales Division partnered with local businesses to sponsor MADD’s Strides for Change Walk, and worked with the Georgia Conservancy to promote ecological thinking through the Youth Environmental Symposium.
Chicago
In Fall 2006, Lawrence Yamoah won $3,700 for turning sneakers into works of art. The Chicago 18-year-old received his windfall through the local and national business plan competitions hosted by the National Foundation for Teaching Entrepreneurship. The Chicago CRC is the sole sponsor of that city’s local contest. Yamoah, who used his earnings to purchase an airbrush machine and make his business plan a reality, is one example of the 1,700 young people who participated in the program at 33 Chicago schools in 2006.
Another organization supported by the Chicago CRC was the Jennifer S. Fallick Cancer Support Center, which provides free wellness programs to families coping with cancer. The CRC made donations in 2006 to help fund activities for children, including Summer Fun Days, where kids affected by cancer can meet and play with other children going through the same hardships.
Lima, Ohio
Each year in Ohio for nearly two decades, the Lima CRC and UAW Local 1219 have made life easier for people in wheelchairs. In 2006, that meant donating thousands of dollars to pay for wheelchair ramp materials, plus countless hours of labor to put those materials to use. To date, this volunteer effort has installed ramps in more than 400 homes of local families who otherwise would not have been able to afford this crucial modification.
In November, the UAW/Ford Wheelchair Ramp volunteers were recognized with a neighborhood leadership award for their ongoing efforts.
Nashville
Ten pounds per person—that’s how much food the Nashville CRC averaged when it collected for the Second Harvest Bank drive. The CRC supports the food bank’s annual Letter Carrier drive by holding its own week-long effort. In 2006, the CRC increased donations by 38% over the year before, making Ford Motor Credit employees the single-largest donor organization to Second Harvest of Middle Tennessee.
Junior Achievement also benefits from the Nashville CRC’s goodwill; Ford Credit employees volunteered to teach more than 100 classes on business and economics in area schools in 2006. In addition, the Nashville CRC focuses on United Way through payroll deductions and donations of time. During Thanksgiving, employees filled food baskets with enough turkey and fixings to feed more than 80 families in need.
Southern California
Although most Californians probably take the Pacific Ocean for granted, there are some children who have lived their whole lives in the state and have never stepped foot on a beach. Those are the kids the Ocean Institute’s Adopt-a-Class program was designed to benefit the most. In 2006, with help from the Southern California CRC, this unique program gave nearly 6,000 elementary students from 61 schools the chance to learn marine science and study the ocean environment while having fun.
Among the 40 other charities and not-for-profit organizations the Southern California CRC supported were a symphony family concert series, Meals On Wheels and the Museum of Latin American Art.
The CRC capped off the year in grand style with its eighth annual Ford Spirit of the Holidays luncheon and toy drive, held in cooperation with the company’s Premier Automotive Group headquarters in Irvine. Some 700 toys and goodies were collected and distributed to children’s aid organizations in the area.
