Kroger donates $100,000 to American Cancer Society

June 29, 2010 - PRLog -- CINCINNATI – The American Cancer Society has accepted a $100,000 donation from the Kroger Company and its employees to help the Society save lives and create more birthdays for cancer patients and their loved ones.

This is the 13th consecutive year that Kroger has made a donation at this level. Its total cash donations in that time have exceeded $1.3 million. The Society will apply the gift to help women access mammograms, educate people about prevention and early detection, initiate new research and improve the quality of life for people undergoing cancer treatment.

“Kroger shoppers and customers are clearly passionate about the issue of cancer, and we’re thankful they allow us to support the American Cancer Society so vigorously,” said Geoff Covert, president of Kroger’s Cincinnati-Dayton Division. “Kroger is honored to have the ability to take such a prominent role in saving and improving the lives of cancer patients and their caregivers who are fighting the disease in our neighborhoods.”

Joy Dienger, the president of the American Cancer Society’s Ohio Division, said that Kroger’s dedication has saved many lives from cancer.

“Kroger’s sustained support of the American Cancer Society has allowed us to provide more services to cancer patients than we could have ever hoped to deliver otherwise,” she said. “On behalf of all the volunteers and cancer patients who have benefited from this generosity, I say ‘Thank you’ to our good friends at Kroger.”

The gift will support multiple American Cancer Society initiatives.

The American Cancer Society’s BEST program, which provides mammography screenings to uninsured and underinsured women, received enough support from Kroger to provide 186 mammograms for women throughout the Tri-State.

Kroger is also supporting 17 American Cancer Society Relay For Life events in Southwest Ohio and Northern Kentucky. Relay For Life is the Society’s community-based volunteer event to celebrate survivors, remember those we’ve lost and fight back against cancer. Teams of participants spend all night walking around a track in recognition of the fact that cancer never sleeps. Kroger is sponsoring Relays in each of these locations: Anderson Twp., Brown County, Campbell County, Clinton County-Wilmington, Colerain Twp., Fairfield, Harrison, Highland County, Huber Heights, Kettering, Loveland, Mason, Miami County, Sharonville, Vandalia-Butler, West Chester and the West Side of Cincinnati. Find a Relay near you by visiting relayforlife.org or calling 800-227-2345.

Finally, Kroger will be a flagship sponsor for the American Cancer Society’s Making Strides Against Breast Cancer events in Cincinnati on Oct. 17 and in Dayton on Oct. 16. Making Strides is the Society’s signature event to fight breast cancer. Teams of participants walk 5 miles or 5 kilometers while celebrating survivors, improving awareness about prevention and early detection and raising funds to support new advances against the disease. More than 16,000 people participated in this event in the two cities in 2009. Learn more at cancer.org/stridesonline.

The American Cancer Society combines an unyielding passion with nearly a century of experience to save lives and end suffering from cancer. We save lives by helping people stay well by preventing cancer or detecting it early; helping people get well by being there for them during and after a cancer diagnosis; by finding cures through investment in groundbreaking discovery; and by fighting back by rallying lawmakers to pass laws to defeat cancer and by rallying communities worldwide to join the fight. Learn more at cancer.org or call 800-227-2345.

# # #

About the American Cancer Society: The American Cancer Society saves lives and creates more birthdays by helping people stay well and get well, by finding cures and by fighting back. Find more information about cancer anytime by calling 800-227-2345 or visiting cancer.org.