DETROIT, Jan. 9, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- As temperatures
fluctuate this winter in Michigan,
one thing for sure is snowy, icy and even cold rainy days are here
through March and warm winter boots and socks are still a "must
have" in Michigan. To protect families from the cold, on
Saturday, January 9, 2016, Toyota
Motor North America through its "Toyota Walk In My
Boots" community outreach project and the North American
International Auto Show activities, for the fifth year, stepped in
to help area low-income and homeless families by providing new
insulated winter boots and socks to more than 200 participants of
The Salvation Army Conner Creek Corps Community Center located on
Detroit's Eastside and The
Salvation Army Booth Services of Detroit, a homeless shelter for primarily
women and single mothers and their children.
Without adequate clothing, often low-income families and people
experiencing homelessness have a much higher risk than the general
population of developing exposure-related conditions such as
hypothermia and frostbite. "With the need greater than ever because
of the cold winter months, we are blessed to have support from good
corporate citizens like Toyota, who are 'Doing the Most Good' by
raising awareness of our mission to feed, shelter and clothe those
who are less fortunate," said Major Russ
Sjogren, general secretary and Metro Detroit area commander,
The Salvation Army Eastern Michigan Division.
If you are poor, you are essentially an illness, an accident, or
a paycheck away from living on the streets. In Detroit alone,
two-thirds of people can't afford basic needs like housing and
health care, even when family members are employed; and 67% of
Detroit families are either under
the poverty line or what is identified as "ALICE", asset-limited,
income-constrained, employed. Meanwhile, more than half of
Michigan's homeless population is
made up of families; and one in three who are homeless are
children.
"At Toyota, we want to build more than just great cars and
trucks," said Michael Rouse, vice
president, Diversity, Philanthropy and Community Affairs, Toyota
Motor North America. "We want to help build great
communities; and in times like these, we must remember to help one
another. We want the work that is being done at The Salvation
Army of Metro Detroit to continue for years to come. And, we
hope that our donation of winter boots and socks will help to
enrich lives…one step at a time."
With this donation, many families will be shielded from the
cold. Toyota also donated $15,000 to The Salvation Army of
Metro Detroit enabling them to continue to provide refuge for
children and families in times of crisis. They also treated
the families to a "Thanksgiving-style" buffet luncheon by Unique
Food Management. In its fifth year, Toyota has donated over
1,000 pairs of winter boots and contributed more than $65,000 in cash just in Detroit alone. The project has also been
held in Chicago, Washington DC and, new this year, in
Baltimore.
While many programs offer winter coat giveaways, a person's feet
are often left vulnerable to freezing temperatures and even
frostbite. The timing of the winter boots and sock giveaway
was a comfort to many as predicted snowfall and freezing
temperatures were expected the next day.
The Salvation Army Conner Creek Corps Community Center
located on Detroit's Eastside
provides emergency financial assistance, food and nutrition
programs, character building after school programs for children,
music and arts programs and worship services for the local
community. Meanwhile, The Salvation Army Booth
Services provides residents with emergency shelter for up to 90
days for single women and single mothers and their children who
have become victims of unfortunate life circumstances such as house
fire, job loss, foreclosure or domestic violence. Through the
shelter they can receive emergency assistance, case management and
pastoral care and worship and special services such as utility
assistance, down payment assistance toward first month's rent, food
and clothing assistance.
About Toyota
Toyota (NYSE: TM), the world's
top automaker and creator of the Prius and the Mira fuel cell
vehicle, is committed to building vehicles for the way people live
through our Toyota, Lexus and Scion
brands. Over the past 50 years, we've built more than 30
million cars and trucks in North
America, where we operate 14 manufacturing plants (10 in the
U.S.) and directly employ more than 42,000 people (more than 33,000
in the U.S.). Our 1,800 North American dealerships (1,500 in
the U.S.) sold more than 2.67 million cars and trucks (more than
2.35 million in the U.S.) in 2014 – and about 80 percent of all
Toyota vehicles sold over the past 20 years are still on the road
today.
Toyota partners with philanthropic organizations across the
country, with a focus on education, safety and the environment. As
part of this commitment, we share the company's extensive know-how
garnered from building great cars and trucks to help community
organizations and other nonprofits expand their ability to do good.
For more information about Toyota, visit
www.toyotanewsroom.com.
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SOURCE Toyota