Giving addresses community issues around affordable housing, small businesses, education and tribal communities
PHOENIX--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Wells Fargo today announced the company donated more than $5.4 million
to 415 local nonprofits, schools and community organizations in 2018 to
help the communities and people of Arizona.
Wells Fargo’s philanthropic contributions build on a long history of
collaboration with local nonprofits and community leaders to make a
positive impact by addressing urgent community issues such as affordable
housing, small business growth, access to education and supporting
tribal communities.
When combined with the $2.8 million donated by the company’s 16,109
Arizona team members, nonprofits in the state received a total of $8.2
million from Wells Fargo and its team members in 2018. That amounts to
an average daily donation of $22,707.
“Across our community, many residents are working hard to make ends
meet,” said Don Pearson, Wells Fargo’s lead region president based in
Phoenix. “Here in Arizona, we want to help people find a stable place to
live, help small business owners expand, and help young people gain a
quality education that prepares them for the workforce. We are
determined to help people and communities, especially in underserved
areas, succeed financially. We will continue to provide philanthropy,
volunteers, expertise and other resources to revitalize and strengthen
local neighborhoods.”
Beyond philanthropy, Wells Fargo team members in Arizona volunteered
more than 115,000 hours in 2018 to support nonprofits and causes
important to them. Local projects and efforts include more than 5,600
volunteer hours supporting St. Mary’s Food Bank Alliance and 2,100
volunteer hours supporting Junior Achievement projects and causes across
the state.
“Part of what makes Wells Fargo unique is the generosity of our team
members who help multiply our community impact,” said Pearson.
“Sometimes giving time is even more valuable than money, because it puts
our desire to build a strong community into action and gives us a
tangible way to personally make a difference.”
United Way Worldwide recently recognized Wells Fargo for having the No.
1 workplace giving campaign in the U.S. for the tenth consecutive year.
Making an impact in Arizona
Wells Fargo concentrated its local philanthropic contributions on
addressing urgent community issues such as:
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Affordable housing. To help increase affordable, stable housing
and homeownership in low- and moderate-income neighborhoods, Wells
Fargo collaborated with local grantees to provide homebuyer education,
down payment assistance and other affordable housing solutions.
Notable grants included $50,000 to Phoenix-based Trellis
for homeownership counseling, financial access and neighborhood
development; $15,000 to the Prescott
Area Habitat For Humanity; $10,000 to United
States Veterans Initiative for affordable housing/foreclosure
prevention and counseling; and $10,000 to the White Mountain Apache
Housing Authority for their veteran home rehabilitation program.
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Small business growth. Small businesses are critical to job
creation and a vibrant community. Many diverse-owned small businesses,
especially those in rural and low- to moderate-income communities,
face unique challenges and often lack access to the full spectrum of
resources necessary for growth and success. Nonprofits serving small
businesses received grants to provide access to capital and training
for entrepreneurs in rural and urban markets. Notable grants included
$50,000 to Chicanos
Por La Causa for the Prestamos program that provides small
businesses access to capital through nontraditional small business
financing resources; $25,000 to Coconino
County Community College Foundation for the Small Business
Development Center; $25,000 to Grand
Canyon Trust for the Native American Business Incubator Network;
and $9,500 to Nogales Community Development Corporation to support the
city’s small business development and downtown revitalization efforts.
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Economic equity and inclusion. Support included grants to
nonprofits that directly serve diverse and historically underserved
groups, including initiatives focused on the development of women and
diverse talent, education and vocational training, and other solutions
for communities with limited access to traditional financial services.
Notable Wells Fargo collaborations included $75,000 to fund Local
Initiatives Support Corporation’s mission to forge resilient and
inclusive communities of opportunity; $50,000 to the Greater
Phoenix Urban League and $25,000 to the Tucson
Urban League for career training and workforce development; and
$35,000 to A
New Leaf to support a job training program and financial
capability, including volunteer income tax assistance.
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Access to education. Support included grants for local K-12
schools, scholarships for post-secondary or vocational training and
financial education. Notable grants range from more than $100,000 to Junior
Achievement to support its mission to inspire and prepare young
people to succeed in a global economy and $45,000 to Be
A Leader Foundation’s mission to increase the number of
college-prepared students in Arizona to $7,500 to Lowell
Observatory for the Navajo-Hopi Astronomy Outreach Program.
Funding specific to in-school, curriculum-based program enrichment
included $25,000 to Arizona
Science Center for focused field trips; $20,000 to Scottsdale Arts
for early childhood arts-education enrichment; $15,000 to United
Way to sponsor a Vello online tutoring classroom; and $10,000.00
to the Arizona
Council on Economic Education for their financial fitness and
academic achievement programs, to name a few.
For 2019, the Wells Fargo Arizona Foundation has made minor changes to
guidelines to help maximize the opportunities that impact Arizona
communities. The application calendar for 2019 is the largest change, as
there is now specific timing for grant submissions per program area. The
calendar is as follows: Jan. 9 – Feb. 10 for arts & culture, civic, and
environmental (now closed); March 1– April 10 for education, June 1 –
July 10 for community development; and Aug. 1– Sept. 10 for social and
human services. Event sponsorships will be accepted year-round, and must
be received at least 120 days in advance of the event. For more
information on Wells Fargo’s grant guidelines visit www.wellsfargo.com/donations.
About Wells Fargo
Founded in 1852 and headquartered in San Francisco, Wells Fargo &
Company (NYSE:WFC) provides banking, investment and mortgage products
and services, as well as consumer and commercial finance, through 7,800
locations, more than 13,000 ATMs, and the internet (wellsfargo.com).
Wells Fargo’s vision is to satisfy customers’ financial needs and help
them succeed financially. With approximately 259,000 team members, Wells
Fargo serves one in three households in the United States. Wells Fargo &
Company was ranked No. 26 on Fortune’s 2018 rankings of America’s
largest corporations. In 2018, Wells Fargo donated more than $444
million to nearly 11,000 nonprofits in support of affordable housing,
small business growth, financial education, and sustainability, among
other community needs. For 10 consecutive years, Wells Fargo has held
the honor of No. 1 in workplace giving by United Way Worldwide. Wells
Fargo team members also make a difference by donating more than 2
million hours of volunteer time in the last year. News, insights and
more information on the company’s corporate responsibility are available
at Wells
Fargo Stories.