Detroit Auto Dealers Association’s Charitable Foundation Fund Surpasses 100 Grants

Detroit, MI, October 16, 2008 --(PR.com)-- The Detroit Auto Dealers Association (DADA) Charitable Foundation Fund of the Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan reached a historic milestone today, surpassing 100 grants in its continued effort to improve the lives of children and youth. Created as a permanent endowment, the Charitable Foundation Fund has made 101 grants totaling nearly $3 million since its inception in 1998.

“Working with the Community Foundation staff has improved our ability to support important programs and organizations in the southeast Michigan region to improve the lives of children and youth through grants from this fund,” said Rod Alberts, executive director of the DADA.

The Fund represents a significant, lasting legacy to the DADA’s charitable commitment to southeast Michigan. Recently, advisers to the Charitable Foundation Fund recommended 11 grants, totaling $350,000, to organizations that provide services to youth in the region.

Programs and organizations that received grants include:
• Angels’ Place, Southfield, $25,000, for support to implement a youth volunteer program to work with adults with developmental disabilities
• Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra, Ann Arbor, $15,000, for support to expand the “Ensembles in Your Classroom” program for grades K through 5
• Camp Fire USA Wathana Council, Southfield, $40,000 (over 2 years), for support for an environmental awareness and stewardship project
• Children’s Leukemia Foundation, Southfield, $20,000, for support for family support services in southeast Michigan
• Eastern Michigan University Foundation, Ypsilanti, $25,000, for support to expand the community outreach and mentoring activities for the B. Side program, an entrepreneurial training program for youth
• Franklin-Wright Settlements Inc., Detroit, $50,000, for support for an early childhood education program as part of its “Youth First” initiative
• The Guidance Center, Southgate, $35,000, for support for parenting workshops and parent-child interaction groups
• Holy Cross Children’s Services, Clinton, $20,000, for support to the Foundation for Exceptional Children for therapeutic equipment
• Mosaic Youth Theatre of Detroit, Detroit, $50,000, for support for a college and professional development program
• Penrickton Center for Blind Children, Taylor, $30,000, for support for speech and communication services for children with disabilities
• Volunteers in Prevention, Probation and Prisons, Inc., Detroit, $40,000, for support to expand a school-based mentoring program in Detroit

The DADA was founded in 1907 by a group of five Detroit-area auto dealers after they hosted the very first Detroit Auto Show in the same year. Today, the DADA membership includes more than 250 new-vehicle dealers who own 240 dealerships-selling 40 different vehicle lines in 64 cities throughout the metropolitan Detroit area. The dealers are affiliated with the DADA through one or more of 15 vehicle line groups, or through individual membership. Currently, DADA members collectively employ more than 16,500 people. Ninety-eight percent of new-car and new-truck dealers in Wayne, Oakland and Macomb Counties are members of the DADA. Currently, DADA members have an average of 26 years experience in the auto industry.

The Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan is a permanent community endowment built by gifts from thousands of individuals and organizations committed to the future of southeast Michigan. The Foundation works to improve the region’s quality of life by connecting those who care with causes that matter. The Foundation supports a wide variety of activities benefiting education, arts and culture, health, human services, community development and civic affairs. The Foundation has assets of more than $635 million and, since its inception, has distributed more than $317 million through more than 30,000 grants to nonprofit organizations throughout Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, Monroe, Washtenaw, St. Clair and Livingston counties. For more information, visit www.cfsem.org.

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