$1.8 Million Grant from The Coca-Cola
Foundation will Support Improvements in and around Downtown’s
Largest Tourism District
Mayor Kasim Reed, Coca-Cola Chairman and CEO
Muhtar Kent Unveil New Georgia Historical Society Marker at Site
Where First Coca-Cola was Served
One-hundred-thirty years after Coca-Cola poured its first
beverage in downtown Atlanta, The Coca-Cola Company and The
Coca-Cola Foundation today announced they are pouring money into
improvements throughout the city’s Centennial Olympic Park
District.
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Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed joins Coca-Cola
Chairman and CEO Muhtar Kent and the Georgia Historical Society for
the dedication of a historical marker at the intersection of
Peachtree and Marietta streets, where the first Coca-Cola was
served at Jacobs’ Pharmacy on May 8, 1886. Kent today announced
that Coca-Cola will give $1.8 million to Atlanta’s Centennial
Olympic Park District. (Photo: Business Wire)
Coca-Cola Chairman and CEO Muhtar Kent announced the gift
alongside Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed at a celebration hosted at the
intersection of Peachtree and Marietta streets where the first
Coca-Cola was served on May 8, 1886.
“There is no better way to celebrate 130 years of Coca-Cola than
to give back to our hometown,” said Kent. “While Atlanta has always
been and will always be Coca-Cola’s home, the Centennial Olympic
Park District is our neighborhood. For decades, we have continued
to invest in improving the area around our headquarters to support
the continued growth of tourism, business and residences right here
in our backyard.”
Given by The Coca-Cola Company’s global philanthropic arm, The
Coca-Cola Foundation, the grants announced today include support
for five organizations in the Centennial Olympic Park District:
- $1 million to the Georgia World
Congress Center Authority to support the expansion of green
space and updates to facilities within Centennial Olympic
Park.
- $500,000 to the PATH Foundation
to support efforts to connect Centennial Olympic Park to Atlanta’s
westside neighborhoods, including efforts to reconfigure Ivan Allen
Blvd. with new bike and pedestrian trails and improved
landscaping.
- $250,000 to The National Center for
Civil and Human Rights to support Operation Inspiration, an
access program that underwrites admission fees for students
attending Title 1 schools in metro Atlanta.
- $50,000 to the Atlanta Union
Mission to empower women living at My Sister’s House with
vocational training and life stabilization skills.
- $30,000 to the Children’s Museum of
Atlanta to support new exhibits opening in 2016.
Said Mayor Reed: “Since Coca-Cola’s birth here at Five Points in
1886, the company has been committed to strengthening our city’s
core as a major employer, driver of tourism and contributor to
transformational initiatives like the development of the Centennial
Olympic Park District. Coca-Cola’s commitment today to further
improve the quality of life in downtown is the latest example of
the vibrant private-public partnership we continue to enjoy.
“I often say there is no better global ambassador for Atlanta
than Coca-Cola,” Reed continued. “Our city had the privilege of
loving Coca-Cola first and we are immensely proud of the work the
company continues to do to make our hometown and our world a better
place.”
Since its inception in the early 1990s, Centennial Olympic Park
has become a major tourist hub for downtown Atlanta with more than
three million people visiting the area each year. ‘Pemberton
Place,’ directly north of the park, was developed by Coca-Cola
utilizing land purchased to house Coca-Cola’s Olympic City during
the 1996 Olympic Games, in combination with land acquired by the
company after the Games. In addition to building a new World of
Coca-Cola, Coca-Cola donated the land for both the Georgia Aquarium
and the National Center for Civil and Human Rights to create a hub
for three of Atlanta’s major tourist attractions at Pemberton
Place.
Over the last decade, The Coca-Cola Company and The Coca-Cola
Foundation have invested more than $160 million and tens of
thousands of volunteer hours in support of social, economic and
environmental programs throughout Atlanta.
New historical marker
Mayor Reed and Kent also were joined by representatives from the
Georgia Historical Society who dedicated a new historical marker at
the “Five Points” intersection marking the site of Coca-Cola’s
first pour.
“The Georgia Historical Society is honored to commemorate the
birthplace of Coca-Cola with a Georgia historical marker,” said Dr.
Todd Groce, Georgia Historical Society President and CEO. “Honoring
Coca-Cola as part of the Georgia Business History
initiative ensures that current and future generations will
not only understand the importance of this intersection as the
birthplace of one of the world’s most successful and recognizable
brands, but also the importance of this iconic Georgia company as a
key driver in our state’s development and growth for the past 130
years.”
The text of the marker reads:
“The first glass of Coca-Cola was sold for
five cents on May 8, 1886, at Jacobs’ Pharmacy, a popular Atlanta
soda fountain that was located on this corner. Coca-Cola was
created by Atlanta pharmacist John Pemberton in his laboratory just
a short walk from this location. Atlanta businessman Asa Candler
began to purchase the rights to the formula for Coca-Cola in 1888
and founded The Coca-Cola Company in 1892 as a Georgia corporation
to manufacture and advertise Coca-Cola across the country. Candler
sold the company in 1919 for $25 million to a group of investors
that included Ernest Woodruff. His son, Robert Woodruff, led
Coca-Cola for more than half of the twentieth century, expanding
Coca-Cola into a global business. Today Coca-Cola is the most
widely recognized consumer product in the world.”
Coca-Cola’s global operations have been based in downtown
Atlanta since the beverage was created in Dr. John Pemberton’s home
on Marietta Street in 1886 and carried to Jacobs’ Pharmacy to be
served to the first consumers. After outgrowing a series of offices
stretching from Edgewood Avenue to Decatur Street, The Coca-Cola
Company in 1920 established its current headquarters site on North
Avenue. Today, more than 5,000 people work at the North Avenue
headquarters campus with 4,000 additional Coca-Cola associates
based throughout Georgia.
In addition to today’s dedication event, Coca-Cola said ‘thank
you’ to downtown residents and workers handing out thousands of
free beverages in Woodruff Park. Tickets for free admission to the
World of Coca-Cola were also distributed.
“We are grateful to the millions of people who have supported
and enjoyed our brands in our hometown and around the world over
the years,” Kent added. “It is because of them that we are able to
stand at this historic site today.”
About the Georgia Historical Society
The Georgia Historical Society (GHS) is the premier independent
statewide institution responsible for collecting, examining, and
teaching Georgia history. GHS houses the oldest and most
distinguished collection of materials related exclusively to
Georgia history in the nation. To learn more visit
georgiahistory.com.
About the Georgia Historical Marker Program
The Georgia Historical Society has administered Georgia’s
historical marker program since 1998, erecting over 200 historical
markers across Georgia on a wide variety of subjects. Now, online
mapping tools allow you to design statewide driving routes based on
historical markers, while mobile apps give information about
markers nearby. Visit georgiahistory.com for more ways to use
Georgia’s historical markers and experience history where it
happened.
About The Coca-Cola Foundation
The Coca-Cola Foundation is the global philanthropic arm of The
Coca-Cola Company. Since its inception in 1984, the Foundation has
awarded more than $820 million in grants to support sustainable
community initiatives around the world. For more information about
The Coca-Cola Foundation, please visit
www.coca-colacompany.com/our-company/the-coca-cola-foundation.
About The Coca-Cola Company
The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE: KO) is the world's largest beverage
company, refreshing consumers with more than 500 sparkling and
still brands and more than 3,800 beverage choices. Led by
Coca-Cola, one of the world's most valuable and recognizable
brands, our Company's portfolio features 20 billion-dollar brands,
18 of which are available in reduced-, low- or no-calorie options.
These brands include Diet Coke, Coca-Cola Zero, Fanta, Sprite,
Dasani, vitaminwater, Powerade, Minute Maid, Simply, Del Valle,
Georgia and Gold Peak. Through the world's largest beverage
distribution system, we are the No. 1 provider of both sparkling
and still beverages. More than 1.9 billion servings of our
beverages are enjoyed by consumers in more than 200 countries each
day. With an enduring commitment to building sustainable
communities, our Company is focused on initiatives that reduce our
environmental footprint, create a safe, inclusive work environment
for our associates, and enhance the economic development of the
communities where we operate. Together with our bottling partners,
we rank among the world's top 10 private employers with more than
700,000 system associates. For more information, visit Coca-Cola
Journey at www.coca-colacompany.com, follow us on Twitter at
twitter.com/CocaColaCo, visit our blog, Coca-Cola Unbottled, at
http://www.coca-colablog.com or find us on LinkedIn at
www.linkedin.com/company/the-coca-cola-company.
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