InsuranceInformation Institute

The Insurance Industry’s Contribution to Community Development

Inside:

Preserving California’s Historic Mission ................................................................1 Project Senior........................................................................................................4 A Mariachi Festival ...............................................................................................6 Providing Quality Child Care ...............................................................................8 A Program for Scholars .......................................................................................10 “Young Americanos” Photos................................................................................12

The Children’s Hour

I.I.I. MembersACE USA

Allstate Insurance Group

American Agricultural Insurance

Company

American International Group, Inc.

American Re-Insurance Company

Atlantic Mutual Companies

Bituminous Insurance Companies

Chubb Group of Insurance Companies

CNA

CUMIS Insurance Society, Inc.

De Smet Farm Mutual Insurance

Company of South Dakota

Erie Insurance Group

Farmers Insurance Group

Foundation Reserve Insurance

Company, Inc.

GE Employers Reinsurance

Corporation

GEICO

GeneralCologne Re

The Harford Mutual Insurance

Companies

The Hartford Financial Services

Group, Inc.

Holyoke Mutual Insurance Company

Liberty Mutual Group

Lloyd’s America Inc.

Marsh Inc.

MetLife Auto & Home

Millville Mutual Insurance Companies

Nationwide

Norfolk & Dedham Group

OneBeacon Insurance Group

Prudential Property & Casualty Group

SAFECO Insurance Companies

The St. Paul Companies, Inc.

SCOR U.S. Corporation

Selective Insurance Group, Inc.

State Farm Fire and Casualty Company

Swiss Reinsurance America Corporation

Travelers Insurance

Trenwick America Reinsurance

Corporation

Unitrin Property and Casualty

Insurance Group

USAA

Utica National Insurance Group

Westfield Group

X.L. Insurance Company, Ltd.

It will make no one proud to learn that anestimated 860,000 children in the U.S.were victims of abuse and neglect in 1999

alone. More than 58 percent of victims suf-fered neglect, while 21 percent suffered physi-cal abuse and 11 percent were sexuallyabused. And in that year more than 1,100children died from abuse and neglect. Asawareness grows that child abuse is a deep-rooted problem found in every community,regardless of economics, ethnicity or educa-tional background, an urgent question arises:Can an individual, office or company reallybe effective in combating the crisis? TheInsurance Industry Charitable Fund devel-oped Insuring Our Future, an innovative program that works to break the cycle ofabuse and to improve lives through long-termabuse counseling and treatment, mentoring,job preparation and, for some, transitionalhousing.

There are other ways the industry ismaking a difference for children and theirfamilies. The East River Park in lowerManhattan, just two miles from GroundZero, is the only green space of any conse-quence in a densely populated part of the citymarked by low- and middle-income housingdevelopments. As part of PrudentialFinancial’s Global Volunteer Day, employeeshelped clean up and restore the park’s play-grounds and sports field for the neighbor-hood youth. Focusing on children and sports,

SAFECO has just launched its new “PlayBall”program to install electronic scoreboards atyoung people’s baseball fields around thecountry.

Education of children is also an impor-tant focus for insurers. Nationwide is the firstinsurance company to receive the UnitedWay’s Spirit of America Award. The companywas elected for a wide range of activitiesincluding its tutoring program for urbanschool students who need extra help to passproficiency tests. And when it comes to safety,Farmers focuses on children. Through its chil-dren’s safety program, parents will receive adiscount on their auto premiums after theirteen completes the company’s driver safetycourse.

Also in this issue of Impact, we high-light a new financial literacy program calledFinancial Fitness, sponsored by the Neigh-borhood Reinvestment Corporation andNeighborWorks® Network, which helps families that do not have financial skills learnto save, invest and increase their resources.GEICO’s most recent Habitat for Humanityinitiative in Washington, D.C. is also featured.

Gordon Stewart, PresidentInsurance Information Institute

Inside:

Insuring Our Children’s Future .............................................................................1

United Way’s Spirit of America Award ..................................................................4

An Urban Park ......................................................................................................6

Financial Fitness....................................................................................................8

Supporting Youth Baseball ..................................................................................10

Children’s Safety..................................................................................................12

Habitat for Humanity .........................................................................................14

Summer 2002 Vol. 8 No.1 Impact is published by the Insurance Information Institute, 110 William Street, New York, N.Y. 10038; 212-346-5500. Editor: Neil Liebman ©2002 Insurance Information Institute, http://www.iii.org

1

Insuring Our Children’s Future

An estimated 860,000 children in the United States were victims of abuse and

neglect in 1999. More than 58 percent of victims suffered neglect, while 21 per-

cent suffered physical abuse and 11 percent were sexually abused. In that year

more than 1,100 children died from abuse and neglect. Child abuse is a deep-

rooted problem found in every community, regardless of economics, ethnicity

or educational background. But what can an individual, office or company do

to prevent this tragedy from occurring?

On the Cover: Mother plays with daughter at Family Stress Center class. Above: Families enjoy a picnic.

The California insuranceindustry is addressing childabuse in a number of effec-

tive ways through the InsuranceIndustry Charitable Fund (IICF).The IICF works with the insuranceindustry to create a presence in localcommunities. By concentrating oncharitable giving and involvement,the IICF creates the power to help—sometimes one life at a time.

Insuring Our Future was devel-oped by IICF to help teens make thetransition from foster care to self-suf-ficiency. The program works to breakthe cycle of abuse and to improvelives through long-term abuse coun-seling and treatment, mentoring, jobpreparation and, for some, transi-tional housing. The IICF and itspartners originally created theInsuring Our Future program at the Richstone Family Center inHawthorne, not far from LosAngeles airport. Urgent issues incor-porated in the program includeanger management, parenting skillsand drug and alcohol counseling.Funding for the program is providedby a partnership of the IICF, Cal-Surance, and Insuring theChildren, a volunteer organization of the insurance industry.

“Many abused children are putinto the foster care system when theycannot be returned to their families,”said Karen Chin, chief executive offi-cer of IICF. “A staggering numberremain in the system, then are sud-denly tossed out at age 18, when thestate declares that they are adults.”

According to Chin, many ofthem have lived in up to eleven fosterhomes and often are behind in schooldue to the lack of stability in theirlives. They are still trying to deal withabuse issues and need support to

learn the skills necessary to continuetheir education and move on. Theirpast may have left them particularlyunprepared for living on their own.Both physically and mentally vulner-able, they are susceptible to abusivesituations, possibly becoming home-less or pregnant.

The five-year grant funding theInsuring Our Future model programis being studied by other agencies, par-ticularly for its strong multifacetedapproach. The young women in theprogram are also required to finishhigh school, get a job and learn bud-geting, scheduling, cooking, andresponsibility. It works to give themstability, self-sufficiency and the toolsthey need to move beyond their abuse.

“These young women are inspir-ing in their determination to worktoward a strong, healthy life,” saidIICF Ex-Officio Bruce Basso of ABDInsurance. “One young woman toldme that the Insuring Our Future pro-gram has created the first real sense ofa supportive ‘family’ she’s everknown.”

Family Stress Center

The IICF also provides monetarygrants to ongoing programs, whichhave been carefully screened for effec-tiveness. The IICF Child AbusePrevention Program (CAPP) hasbrought together volunteers from theinsurance industry in a particularly

fruitful collaboration with the Mt.Diablo Chapter of CPCU, theIndependent Insurance AgentsAssociation of Contra Costa County,the National Association of InsuranceWomen of Contra Costa County andthe Tri-Valley Insurance Professionals.

The Family Stress Center is sup-ported by the IICF because of thecomprehensive scope of their pro-gramming. Instead of just workingwith the abused and the abuser, FSCtries to meet the needs of all compo-nents of the family, whether this bein the respite nursery, counseling,parenting classes or anger manage-ment classes. “The counseling pro-gram is designed to help families atall levels of need,” explained ChrisLafferty of the Family Stress Center.“The parent often does not see aproblem and is reluctant to partici-pate in counseling. The mission ofthe FSC is to prevent child abuse andneglect by providing psychologicalsupport and educational servicesfocusing on the critical and long-term needs of children and parents,”she said, adding, “The IICF and itsCAPP program provide a forum tospeak on behalf of the children. Thegoal is a safe and nurturing family lifefor the child.”

In addition to the thousands ofdollars raised annually, the membersof CAPP take advantage of an IICF-wide program, IICF Bridge Week.

2

Abused children’s pasts may leave

them particularly unprepared for

living on their own.

During nine days in October eachyear, IICF companies provide volun-teers for its grant recipients, some toparticipate in ongoing programs and

others to tackle one-time jobs. During IICF Bridge Week, the

Family Stress Center asked IICFCAPP volunteers to “sow the seeds ofchange” as one component of a com-prehensive system of support andskill-building by providing a picnic.The picnic was targeted at three dis-

tinct Family Stress Center groups: theLatino Family Program for monolin-gual families, the GrandparentsSupport Group for those who havethe responsibility of raising theirgrandchildren, and the “ProudFathers” group. The goal was to pro-vide a safe, relaxed setting for familiesto enjoy time together, to providemodels of how other families interactand to provide information aboutsupport and educational programs.

Companies such as SAFECO,GeneralCologne Re, Zenith, Chubband State Compensation Insurancedonated food and supplies, andjoined IICF CAPP volunteers to dec-orate, cook, serve and oversee themulticultural event.

“Because of the safe, neutral set-ting, one young man was persuadedto overcome his reticence and a diffi-cult family situation,” said Basso.“He attended and met his ten-month-old child for the first time.This was an opportunity whichresulted in his becoming a regularand steady part of the child’s life.”

Over the years, IICF has alsomade grants to La Casa de LasMadres, San Francisco’s oldest abuseshelter, providing funds for the pur-chase of a van, a commercial gradewasher, dryer and dishwasher.“Families have experienced a signifi-cant drop in the number of colds andillnesses now that plates and utensilsare sterilized, lessening stress at a dif-ficult time in their lives,” said Chin.“Support, trust, demonstrated con-cern—these join with monetarygrants to show how the Californiainsurance industry works to fightchild abuse through the InsuranceIndustry Charitable Fund.” For moreinformation on the IICF, visit theirWeb site at www.iicf.com. ■

3

Above and below: Holiday celebra-

tions at the Family Stress Center.

One of the major focuses ofthese efforts is the UnitedWay. An estimated 1,000

people participated in United Way’sDay of Caring community volunteerproject and Nationwide associate,retiree and agent pledges to theUnited Way campaign amounted tomore than $5.2 million, or nearly$200 per person. These contribu-tions are matched dollar for dollarby the Nationwide Foundation,resulting in $10 million to be dis-tributed to more than 700 UnitedWay groups across the country. InColumbus, Nationwide contribu-tions are nearly 11 percent ofUnited Way of Central Ohio’s totalfunding.

Last year, in recognition of this

outstanding achievement, W.G.Jurgensen, Nationwide’s chief execu-tive officer, was presented with theUnited Way of America’s 14th annu-al Spirit of America Award on behalfof the company’s 30,000 associatesand 4,100 exclusive agents. It isUnited Way’s highest national honorfor corporate community involve-ment. Nationwide is the first insurerand first Ohio company to receivethe award.

The presentation was made atUnited Way’s annual awards dinner,attended by some 3,000 United Wayworkers and volunteers, representingmore than 1,000 United Ways.Patricia Mercurio, president of Bankof America, the previous year’s Spiritof America winner, commended

Nationwide “for its incredible spiritof giving and community building”in presenting the Spirit of AmericaAward to Jurgensen.

Jurgensen told the audience,“We are working very hard atNationwide to take our companyfrom the very good company thatwe believe it is to a great company.This is really our vision. This iswhat our associates are dreamingabout.” He explained greatness isattained when you become the stan-dard by which all else is measured.Speaking of the widespread commu-nity involvement by Nationwiders,

4

An Insurance Company Receives the United Way’s Spirit of AmericaAward for the First Time

Mentoring, assisting the elderly, donating

blood—these are just a few examples of the

ways Nationwide’s associates show their

dedication to their communities. Their efforts are given the

full support of their employer, the extent of which can be

understood more clearly when Nationwide’s overall contri-

butions of more than $18.3 million to nearly 1,000 non-

profit organizations are noted. Nationwide CEO W.G. Jurgensen (r.)

with performer Harry Belafonte and

United Way of America interim

President and CEO Chris Amundsen

at the awards ceremony.

Jurgensen said he looked forward totelling associates that this year theybecame “the standard by which allelse is compared.”

Jurgensen gave special thanks tothe 30,000 Nationwiders around theworld who made the award possible.“They truly live our corporate corevalue: caring for people every day. Itis my pleasure to accept this awardon their behalf.”

Another of Nationwide’s commu-nity outreach efforts is Habitat forHumanity. In cooperation with thisgroup, Nationwide associates havebuilt 40 homes across the UnitedStates. A volunteer program intro-

duced in 1997 called Friends atNationwide (FAN) club, allows par-ticipating associates to earn up to twoannual $100 grants, payable to non-profits where they donate 25 hours ofvolunteer time. Last year 500 grantswere awarded. Operation Feed cam-

paign, another program, provided 32 percent of service hours at theMid-Ohio FoodBank, raising fundsfor one million meals last year. ■

5

Helping the elderly is one of the many

volunteer activities undertaken by

Nationwide associates.

Nationwide associate tutors a high

school student in math.

For the fourth consecutiveyear, the park was one of thefocuses of Prudential

Financial employees’ and their fam-ilies’ and friends’ Global VolunteerDay efforts. A total of 1,828 atten-dees put in at least three hourseach, totaling approximately 5,484hours of labor. Projects includedplanting/gardening, tree restora-tion, painting, and cleaning up thepark. Conducted with the coopera-tion of the New York City ParksDepartment, the site’s close prox-

imity to Prudential’s New Yorkoffices make it an ideal project.

But this year was different fromprevious years. East River Park is justtwo miles from Ground Zero. OnSeptember 11, the park provided anescape route for many people whohad been at work when the attackstook place and had no way of leav-ing the area but on foot. While thepark was not directly affected by thetragedy, there was a rush of volunteerspirit evident in the number of par-ticipants who came to help out on

this Global Volunteer Day, whichtook place on October 6. The prox-imity of the park to the World TradeCenter site and the short period oftime that separated the two eventsspurred twice as many people to vol-unteer compared to the previousyear. For many volunteers, the initia-tive was a way to get involved inrebuilding the city.

“This year’s event was specialbecause we had a chance to work for the New York Police and FireDepartments’ Widows’ and

6

An Urban Park in New York City

The 57-acre East River Park begins just north of New York City’s business center

in lower Manhattan and extends north for about a mile and a half, following the

curve of the East River. The park is the only green space of any consequence in

that part of the city. Besides a mall that allows strollers to enjoy the river views, East River Park

offers tennis courts, a children’s playground, basketball courts,

baseball fields and an athletic field. The neighborhoods that it

serves have high concentrations of mid- to low-income families liv-

ing mostly in the subsidized housing developments that character-

ize the lower east side. Although a far cry from the much

better-known Central Park, which is surrounded by expensive

apartments and shops, it is still enjoyed by many New Yorkers.

Photo: Antoine M

asisani

Children’s Benefit Fund, said MaryIx, one of the organizers of the event. “Everyone gave it their all, and the fact that we were able todonate $109,680 made it even morerewarding.”

Enoka Nanayakkara, one of thevolunteer team captains at the event,put her feelings this way: “We haveall been deeply affected by the tragicevents that shocked our nation. Onenatural response is to seek out ways

to help others in need—a great first step towardour personal and nationalhealing,” she said. “Bybeing a part of GlobalVolunteer Day this year,not only were we helpingto contribute to our com-munity as we do annually,but this time we were alsosupporting New York CityPolice and Fire Depart-

ments and their families. It was trulya team effort that all the volunteerscan be proud of. It is especially grati-fying to me, knowing that the spiritof volunteerism is very much aliveand well at Prudential Financial.”

“The real strength of Americalies in its unique custom of volun-teerism and community service,”said Arthur Ryan, PrudentialFinancial chairman and chief execu-tive officer. “Prudential’s GlobalVolunteer Day builds on a long-standing tradition at PrudentialFinancial and is very visible evidenceof our employees caring for theirneighbors and fellow countrymen inthese challenging times.” ■

7

Photo: Peter Ham

blinPh

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Ant

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Prudential’s Global Volunteer Day.

Flexing Economic Muscles

for Financial Fitness

Mildred and Jerry Smith and their three children have a dream of one day liv-

ing in a home they own. The Smiths are not unlike most families struggling

to save to buy a home. In spite of the

economic prosperity that marked the 1990s in the

United States, one family out of four today does not

have a bank account and, on average, median net finan-

cial assets for American households are a meager $1,000.

In some cases the reason is due to wage earners who are

in low-income jobs. In others, families do not have the

financial skills to save, invest and increase the resources

they have. Worse yet, families can be seduced by some

lenders that offer payday, car title and certain home

equity loans, which are nothing more than high-interest,

high-fee loans that strip away what little wealth and

assets low-income families may have acquired.

8

Mildred and Jerry Smith receive their

Financial Fitness degree.

To help families learn to manage their money moreaffectively, Neighborhood

Reinvestment Corporation (NRC)and members of the Neighbor-Works® network have responded

with a pilot financial literacy pro-gram called Financial Fitness. Theyhave developed standards, adaptedcurriculum, created training materi-als, trained trainers, and raised fundsto support the program at 24

NeighborWorks® sites nationwide.Another 15 sites or more are in theworks for fiscal years 2002 and 2003.Between January and December2001, NRC and NeighborWorks®

enrolled nearly 3,200 people in the

program; nearly 1,800 of them havegraduated. The average income ofparticipants is $24,882. Nearly 86percent are renters, 70 percentminorities, and 70 percent women.

“Although American womenearn more than $1 trillion a year,control 55 percent of the nation’swealth and handle 75 percent offamily finances, many have notplanned for their financial well-being,” noted Rose Lincoln, assistantvice president of public relations forSAFECO. “Half do not have a pen-sion plan and less than a quarterhave planned for retirement. But thisfinancial gap doesn’t have to exist.”

Seven national partners—The Federal Deposit InsuranceCorporation, Providian Financial,FleetBoston Financial, MorganStanley, MetLife Foundation, SAFECO and Visa USA—con-tributed $1.5 million to this effort,with Neighborhood Reinvestmentproviding $1.9 million in operatingsupport.

“MetLife’s vision is to buildfinancial freedom for everyone, andfinancial literacy is a critical first stepon the road to freedom,” said SibylJacobson, president and CEO of theMetLife Foundation. “We arepleased to partner with NRC andNeighborWorks® to increase financialliteracy—and hope for the future—for families nationwide.”

So far, more than 250 counselorsfrom across the country have beentrained at Neighborhood Reinvest-ment Training Institutes to conductFinancial Fitness classes. TheFinancial Fitness curriculum consistsof an orientation and group sessionson topics such as Basic FinancialPlanning and Money Management;Saving and Investing; Banks and

Other Financial Institutions; Credit;Taxes and Insurance; and individualsessions to set up a personal actionplan for each participant. Among itscomponents is an individual develop-ment account (IDA) program, whichmatches savings accumulated by par-ticipants until they have enough fora down payment on a home or toachieve some other goal, such asfinancing a child’s education.

NRC is closely monitoring thesuccess of the Financial FitnessProgram. The curriculum is stillbeing fine-tuned, and may incorpo-rate additional components ofFDIC’s Money Smart program. Itsemphasis, according to FDICChairman Donald E. Powell, is togive people “an understanding ofbasic finances and healthy bankingrelationships that benefits both theindividual and the community.”

The Smiths, who have a com-bined household income in the mid-thirties, just might make their dreambecome a reality. During a seven-week workshop with the Commun-ity Development Corporation ofLong Island’s (CDCLI) Neighbor-Works® HomeOwnership Center, theSmiths learned to review their creditreport, examine their monthlyexpenditures and set up a savings

plan. In fact, they have made signifi-cant changes in their lifestyle inorder to reach their goal. They nego-tiated with their credit card compa-nies to reduce the interest rates ontheir credit cards by eight percent. “Ialso began to shop more wisely andsaved money by purchasing clothingon sale, using coupons and placingitems on a lay-away plan,” Mildredsaid. “I was very proud to share withthe CDCLI staff that I didn’t use asingle credit card to finance myChristmas gifts last year.”

Doug Dylla, national coordina-tor of the NeighborWorks®

Campaign for Home Ownership,which is managing the pilot pro-gram, said, “Even though it’s a basiclife skill, few of us learned financialmanagement from our parents orfrom school. Unfortunately, most ofus learned hard lessons by makingmistakes—over-spending, accumulat-ing too much debt and generallyhandling our money poorly.

“Thankfully, these skills can betaught, and we can all learn how tosave, invest and handle our moneybetter. This is the first step to reach-ing our financial goals, whether thattranslates into buying a home, send-ing a child to college, retiring early,or just being more secure.” ■

9

In the U.S. today, one family out

of four doesn’t have a bank account.

Baseball is the quintessentialyouth sport. Its importance asa healthy outlet for young-

sters in America’s rural, suburbanand urban communities cannot be

underestimated. The sport provides apositive release for pent-up energyand teaches the benefits of teamwork and the spirit of competition.

And now SAFECO is stepping

up to the plate to bring a little big-league magic to youth baseball orga-nizations around the country. Inpartnership with local insuranceagents and advisors, SAFECO is

10

American myth has it that Abner Doubleday of Cooperstown, New York, set

down the essential rules of baseball in 1839, described the field, and even gave

the game its name. What is not in dispute is that in 1939 the Little League

was founded in Williamsport,

Pennsylvania, one century

after the birth of the

Doubleday legend. Like its

grown-up predecessor, youth

baseball quickly became a

phenomenon. By the end of

the 1990s, an estimated nine

million young people under

the age of 18, both boys and

girls, were playing baseball. SAFECO President and CEO Mike McGavick signs baseballs for young players.

Photos: Steve Magiana, A

P

“PlayBall” SupportsYouth Baseball

continuing its history of helpingneighborhoods with a contributionof $1 million over the next two yearsto install electronic scoreboards atyouth baseball fields. The “PlayBall”pledge is part of the insurer’s on-going corporate giving program—Strengthening America’sNeighborhoods.

The first scoreboard went up onMay 4 in Seattle, Washington.SAFECO will continue installingscoreboards in 31 locations this yearin 23 states and 30 more next year.“It’s all about giving back to thecommunity and helping bring peo-ple together,” said Mike McGavick,SAFECO president and CEO.“People coming together is whatmakes America’s neighborhoodswork. Youth baseball provides a rea-son for people to gather, to cheerand celebrate. There’s somethingabout seeing a group of energizedkids with family and friends at aneighborhood ball field that stirs asense of community and belonging

we all yearn for.”The scoreboards mirror the tra-

ditional baseball style used in thedesign of SAFECO Field, home ofthe Seattle Mariners. SAFECO wonthe naming rights to the field in1999 in part because of its history ofgiving back to the community.“Since then, baseball has become apart of our company’s national iden-tity and a focus for our ongoingcommitment to neighborhoods,”

McGavick said. “Each season weremind people of how baseball canbring a community together byteaming with the Mariners to spon-sor baseball clinics and by providingprograms like the ‘Safety All-Stars’that help agents and advisors aroundthe country promote child safety intheir communities with a baseballtheme. The PlayBall program is anatural for SAFECO, our agentsand their local communities.” ■

11

12

“The Latino communitylacks a lot of informa-tion about safety pre-

cautions in the home and while dri-ving,” said Luisa Acosta-Franco,public relations manager for diversemarkets at Farmers Insurance. Tobring some of that informationdirectly to local communities,Farmers developed a safety initiativethat raises awareness in the Latinocommunity. Bilingual safety guideswere developed that outline preven-tive measures that can be applied inthe home and in the car.

To launch this initiative,Farmers Insurance Group was recog-nized on May 3, 2002 by BillBogaard, Mayor of the city ofPasadena, California. In addition,Farmers sponsored the celebrationsof Cinco de Mayo in Pasadena coin-ciding with National Child SafetyWeek. Partnering with Safety BeltUSA, a safety area was set up atCentennial Square in front of

Pasadena City Hall where parentsand children could learn basic safetyprecautions, including the proper wayto wear seatbelts. With recent laws inseveral states across the nation nowrequiring the use of booster seats for

children over 40 pounds (such asSenate Bill 42 in California) Farmersalso instructed parents on the properway to install child booster seats andraffled off several of these seatsthroughout the day.

Safety Initiatives:

Siempre Con LaComunidadS

afety has always been a concern of Farmers Insurance Group—and education the

answer. With the community always in mind (“Siempre Con La Comunidad”),

Farmers decided to reach out to the Latino community in California during local

community celebrations throughout the summer.

Pasadena Mayor Bill Bogaard honors Farmers for its contributions to the

Latino community.

In response to the issue ofmissing children, parents will also beable to obtain child ID kits at theseevents. In Pasadena, Farmers’ agentsand employees volunteered to takechildren’s pictures and collect finger-prints. The pictures were placed in aninformation card detailing the child’sname, age, address, and other perti-nent information.

For new parents, safety kits werehanded out with information on howto make the home a safe place forbabies. Farmers also handed out safe-ty goodies including safety latches forcabinets and drawers, plugs for elec-trical outlets, nightlights, and memomagnets for important telephonenumbers. In keeping with the family-oriented values of the Latino com-munity, these magnets not only listedlocal emergency phone numbers, butalso left room for parents to add theircell phone numbers as well as thephone numbers of family andfriends. “In case of an emergencyLatinos call their tia or abuelita first,”said Acosta-Franco.

Farmers also sponsored the Child

Vehicle Passenger Safety eventat Santa Teresita Hospital inDuarte, California on June 15. Thefocus of this event was to instructparents on ways in which they cankeep their children safe while ridingin a vehicle. Farmers donated 25booster seats to several nonprofitgroups. Safety belt USA was also pre-sent to demonstrate the correct wayto wear a seatbelt for adults and children.

In October, during LatinoHeritage month, Farmers will contin-ue its safety initiatives partnering withcity council member Victor ManuelFranco and the Monrovia Boys andGirls Club. Throughout the summerFarmers also will partner with variouschurches in the greater Los Angelesarea to sponsor similar safety eventsto the African-American community.

All of these events will be pri-marily manned by Farmers’ agents,who volunteer their time at theseprograms. Gabriela Revuelta, whoowns her own agency, volunteers asoften as she can. “I am very proud ofbeing Mexican and very eager to con-tribute to my community,” she said.

“I’mequally proud of Farmersbecause the company doesn’t onlytalk about investing in the Latinocommunity, it goes out to whereLatinos live and brings the informa-tion to them.”

Along with agents, a group ofLatino employees at Farmers’ homeoffice in Los Angeles also volunteeron a regular basis. Ramón Paredes, agraphic designer, volunteers severaltimes a year. “I’ve been with Farmers35 years and enjoy giving back to mycommunity. It gives me great pride toknow that Farmers cares aboutLatinos and their safety. To see thesmiles on parents faces when we helpthem is very rewarding.”

Diane Tasaka, director of corporate communications, conclud-ed, “As our communities grow,Farmers is growing with them,” shesaid. “Farmers not only supportscommunity events and nonprofitgroups, but it also strives to have apositive impact directly on peoples’lives.” ■

13

“To see the smiles on

parents faces when we

help them is very

rewarding.”

Isabel Vega is a happy woman.The single mother of threedaughters aged ten, seven and

four recently found out that shewould be the recipient of one ofeight houses to be built by Habitatfor Humanity in the DeanwoodGardens neighborhood in northeastWashington, D.C.

Vega, who is slated to receivethe house being sponsored byGEICO, was also the beneficiary of volunteer efforts. One recentSunday morning five GEICO associates, Jose Marfori, BobKlosowski, Ken Williams, RobinAddison and Rynthia Rost, got upextra early to rake, mow and pullweeds out of the plot of land des-tined for the homes. “With Habitatyou see immediate results for yourhard work,” said Marfori,

a GEICO lead programminganalyst.

The five worked side-by-sidewith other corporate sponsors andthe prospective homeowners tohelp Habitat for Humanity preparefor its “World Build” groundbreak-ing ceremony. Fifty heads of stateand government built Habitathouses in their respective countriesthe first week in August as part offormer U.S. President JimmyCarter’s World Build initiative.

“GEICO has been involvedwith Habitat for nearly eight years,restoring substandard housing in theWashington Metropolitan Area,”said Rost, GEICO’s vice president ofpublic affairs, who led Habitat’s 20-member Golden Hammer Council(executives from local financial, legal

and nonprofit organi-zations) in fund-raising efforts for the World Build project. TheCouncil raised over$2 million fromarea businesses,with the GEICOPhilanthropicFoundation con-tributing $42,500 to the WorldBuild project.

Habitat for Humanity is one ofseveral nonprofit organizations thatbenefit from GEICO’s CorporateCommunity Citizens (GCCC) pro-gram. Through GCCC, more than2,000 GEICO associates volunteeran average of five hours a weekhelping programs like SpecialOlympics, Juvenile DiabetesFoundation, Big Brothers and BigSisters, and the Boy and GirlScouts. They also mentor students,serve and deliver food to those inneed, make recordings for the blindand dyslexic, work in hospitals andsupport their community fire andrescue squads.

“I was thrilled when I foundout I’ll be getting the GEICOhouse,” Vega told Rost and com-pany associates. “I’ve been wishingfor this for a long time. When it’sdone, you’re welcome to comeover.” The GEICO associatespromised to take her up on theinvitation. ■

Building a Habitat forHumanity Home inWashington, D.C.

GEICO associates help to build a

Habitat for Humanity home.

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