The Blue Bird School Bus Foundation, the charitable branch of Blue Bird Corporation, has continued its efforts to support children’s education, health, and safety in Georgia. At its second community empowerment event this year, the foundation awarded $60,000 to eleven nonprofit organizations in the region. The recipients included groups such as Boys and Girls Clubs of the Chattahoochee Valley, Ronald McDonald House Charities of Central Georgia, Communities in Schools of Central Georgia, Twiggs County Extension 4-H, Jay’s HOPE Foundation, Kid’s College at Wesleyan College, Macon County Board of Education, Peach County Family Connection, First Tee of Middle Georgia, Middle Georgia Community Food Bank Inc., and Mercer University. The grants ranged from $2,500 to $10,000.
John Wyskiel, president and CEO of Blue Bird Corporation stated: “Blue Bird is proud to serve as a good corporate citizen in Georgia, our home state for nearly a century. Our foundation partners with outstanding nonprofit organizations to help address the most pressing social needs in our communities. We are committed to advancing the education, health, and safety of the children in our midst, thereby setting them up for long-term success.”
Kathy R. McCollum, president and CEO of Middle Georgia Community Food Bank—which received $10,000—explained: “Many children in our community rely on free breakfast and lunch at school. We provide much-needed nutritious food to students during weekends and holidays. Child-friendly food products are rarely donated and must be purchased by the food bank. We appreciate the generous funding from Blue Bird School Bus Foundation to purchase food for this program so that students go to school healthy and ready to learn.”
Andrew Felton II, Executive Director of Peach County Family Connection said: “We are truly grateful for this generous investment from the Blue Bird School Bus Foundation. This contribution of support in the amount of $7,500 will allow us to strengthen our outreach and deliver meaningful programming focused on conflict resolution, social-emotional development, and mental health access and support for the students and families we serve.”
Since 2015 when it was founded, the Blue Bird School Bus Foundation has contributed about $715,000 to various community organizations—including nearly 80 nonprofits based in Georgia.
Two years ago Blue Bird launched its Dealers Driving Communities Forward program. Through this initiative dealers across the United States receive up to $2,500 per year from Blue Bird Corporation for local charitable activities.
