NAPERVILLE, Ill., March 14, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- In response to the
tornado that hit Henryville, Ind.,
on March 2, OfficeMax®
Incorporated (NYSE:OMX), and Adopt-A-Classroom today announced a
campaign to help Henryville Elementary School "get back to the
business of learning." OfficeMax launched "Help Henryville" with an
immediate $10,000 donation, which the
nonprofit organization Adopt-A-Classroom is channeling directly to
teachers at Henryville Elementary School to help them purchase
materials needed to supply their temporary classrooms.
In addition to the $10,000
donation, now through April 15
OfficeMax will match every dollar – up to $15,000 – donated to the "Help Henryville"
campaign on the Adopt-A-Classroom website
(www.adoptaclassroom.org/helphenryville). The funds raised through
"Help Henryville" will provide critically needed school supplies to
the more than 40 teachers and 700 students displaced after the
tornado destroyed nearly half the structure of Henryville
Elementary School.
"Henryville lost so much when
the tornado hit earlier this month, and now the teachers and
administrators at Henryville Elementary are working tirelessly to
help students get back to a sense of normalcy, and education is a
part of that," said Carolynn Brooks,
president of OfficeMax Charitable Foundation. Brooks added that
education is an important cause for OfficeMax. "We feel it's
important to help the school get back to the business of learning,
and we ask that America join us by making a donation through
Adopt-A-Classroom."
With the initial $10,000 donation
from OfficeMax, each teacher at Henryville Elementary School has
immediate access to $250 to spend on
the supplies his or her classroom needs most. Teachers can choose
the resources they need through a dedicated page on
Adopt-A-Classroom's website.
"So often in the wake of a disaster, people send the aid they
think a community needs to get back on its feet," says James Rosenberg, founder of Adopt-A-Classroom.
"What's special about 'Help Henryville' is that each individual
teacher gets to decide what's most needed in his or her classroom."
The immediate availability of funds is also crucial as the school
prepares to re-open temporarily at Graceland Baptist Church in
New Albany, Ind. Some furniture
and supplies were salvaged, but many classrooms in the school were
a complete loss or could not be reached safely.
"I am so thankful for the acts of kindness that have come our
way," said Heather Edrington, a
teacher at Henryville Elementary School. "We try to teach our
students how important it is to treat others with kindness and to
be supportive to others. They have witnessed many examples of
these things in the last week. We teachers truly appreciate
all the support."
About OfficeMax
OfficeMax Incorporated (NYSE: OMX) is a leader in both
business-to-business office products solutions and retail office
products. The OfficeMax mission is simple. We help our
customers do their best work. The company provides office
supplies and paper, in-store print and document services through
OfficeMax ImPress®, technology products and solutions,
and furniture to businesses and individual consumers.
OfficeMax customers are served by approximately 30,000 associates
through direct sales, catalogs, e-commerce and nearly 1,000
stores. Since 2007, OfficeMax Goodworks programs have served
communities and schools, contributing more than $14 million in grants and supplies to support
teachers and classrooms. To find the nearest OfficeMax, call
1-877-OFFICEMAX. For more information, visit
www.officemax.com.
About Adopt-A-Classroom
Founded in 1998, Adopt-A-Classroom is an award-winning
nonprofit organization that increases opportunity for student
success by empowering teachers with community partners and funds to
purchase resources for the classroom. Adopt-A-Classroom pairs
donors with teachers to provide critical resources and materials to
meet the unique needs of their students and transform their
classrooms into vibrant learning centers. For more information,
visit AdoptAClassroom.org.
Media
Contacts:
|
|
Erin
Smith
|
Nicole
Miller
|
Allison+Partners on Behalf of
Adopt-A-Classroom
|
OfficeMax
|
(415)
875-3056
|
(630)
864-6069
|
Cell:
(650) 224-2462
|
nicolemiller@officemax.com
|
erin.smith@allisonpr.com
|
|
SOURCE OfficeMax Incorporated; Adopt-A-Classroom