GM FYI Blog

By Dan Flores
GM Manufacturing & Labor Communications

Americans are some of the most generous people in the world. Whether our giving takes the form of community service and volunteerism, or dollars donated to benefit a favorite charity, giving among Americans is on the rise.

According to Giving USA, in 2004 alone Americans donated more than $248 billion to charities — that’s the most money ever donated to charity. Although corporations and corporate foundations are giving at record numbers, most of the $248 billion was donated by individuals like you and me.

This underscores why GM and the UAW were so honored to participate in a recent award ceremony sponsored by USA WEEKEND magazine, the Detroit Free Press and actor and philanthropist Paul Newman at the UAW-GM Center for Human Resources (UAW-GM CHR) on April 25. The ceremony was held to recognize GM and the UAW for their 2005 Make A Difference Day campaign, which benefited Make-A-Wish Foundation chapters in communities across the country. Each year, Newman supports the Make A Difference Day campaign with a $100,000 donation, which is awarded to the charities of 10 people or companies who made exceptional contributions — and this year, one of the $10,000 checks went to Make-A-Wish in recognition of GM’s efforts.

I’m proud to say that the people at GM believe in giving; more than 1,500 UAW-GM people, GM dealers and GM employees took part in the annual Make A Difference Day initiative last fall. For a two-month period that ended Oct. 22, GM dealers were asked to enroll and pledge $500 to help benefit the Make-A-Wish Foundation. The UAW-GM CHR matched the money raised. And in addition to that, many UAW-GM people and GM dealers across the country held fundraising events to make even more wishes come true.

This was GM’s third year of participation in the campaign, which generated funds to help grant 154 wishes for children battling life-threatening medical conditions. To date, the UAW-GM CHR and the GM Make A Difference campaign have helped grant a total of 548 wishes to deserving young children.

A public “thank you” goes out to the men and woman at GM, our dealers and other partners who got behind this effort. It’s good to know that the spirit of giving is alive and well at GM.