Each year, a team of individuals at various General Motors operation locations evaluate where the greatest need exists in their respective communities, what charities GM employees are passionate about and how they can make the strongest impact.
In an effort to support and give back to Atlanta, GM’s Georgia IT Innovation Center awarded $40,000 in Plant City Grants to six charities in Metro Atlanta.
Among the charities chosen, one of the grants supported Women in Technology, a nonprofit organization that supports women at every stage of their science, technology, engineering and math careers ranging from the classroom to the boardroom.
“It was an honor to be a recipient of this grant and to see that GM is supporting programs like Women in Technology,” said Sandy Welfare, interim executive director of WIT. “So much of GM’s innovation in the auto industry is based on complex technology and this supports the company’s investment in not only tech’s future, but also in young women.”
WIT’s Plant City Grant will support the WIT Girls Program. Currently, women make up only nine percent of those receiving engineering degrees, and WIT Girls collaborates with the Georgia business community to inspire girls in middle and high school to choose careers in STEM. The grant also supports the WIT Girls’ Robotics program.
In addition to WIT, employees of Roswell-based innovation center also awarded grants to United Way of Greater Atlanta, The Drake House, Technical College System of Georgia, Chattahoochee Nature Center and North Atlanta Toys for Tots.
“We are deeply committed to investing in and strengthening the communities that our employees call home,” said GM Foundation President Vivian Pickard. “We firmly believe that stronger communities are the building blocks of our future and the future of this country.”
General Motors, through the GM Foundation, launched the Plant City Grants program in 2010 to give back through dollars and employee volunteer hours to the communities where employees, dealers and customers live and work. To date, the foundation has given $8 million dollars to charitable organizations across the U.S. who are committed to providing critical resources to strengthen families and neighborhoods.
In other news: For every Wednesday in the month of June, all 69 Atlanta-area Moe's Southwest Grill locations donated 10 percent of their sales to support Bert's Big Adventure. Together, they raised $100,000 for the local organization that provides a magical, all-expenses-paid, five-day journey to Walt Disney World for children with chronic and terminal illnesses and their families.
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