Union, NJ – Boys & Girls Clubs of Union County today announced it has been selected by the Olive Garden in Springfield to receive a $1,000 grant as part of the Restaurant Community Grants program from the Darden Restaurants Foundation, the charitable arm of Darden Restaurants. The annual grants program empowers each of the Olive Garden locations to help award a $1,000 grant to support local community programs. The donation will enable Boys & Girls Clubs of Union County to support their teen programs, which includes Keystone Club and Torch Club. These are teen leadership groups in which members learn leadership and communication skills, prepare for careers and higher education, and participate in community service and civic engagement.
“We have a great partnership with Olive Garden and manager, Ernie Papio,” said Russell Triolo, CEO of Boys & Girls Clubs of Union County. “They are always supportive of our activities and initiatives and we thank them for nominating us for this grant.”
“We’re proud to be able to support Boys & Girls Clubs of Union County through our Restaurant Community Grants program,” said Stephanie Ghertner, Director of the Darden Foundation. “Our team members are incredibly passionate about getting involved in their local communities, and this program enables them to do just that.”
Celebrating 60 year of changing lives in Union County! Summer Program registration is now open at our Union, Plainfield and Elizabeth Clubs. Boys & Girls Clubs of Union County offers youth programs in 6 communities in Union County: Plainfield, Elizabeth, Union, Hillside, Roselle and Linden. Teen leadership programs for ages 14-18 are available in Union, Elizabeth and Plainfield. Members participate in character, leadership, career preparation and community service activities throughout the year. For information on our clubs and programs, please visit our website www.bgcuc.org or contact us 908-687-2697.
Boys & Girls Clubs of Union County
Boys & Girls Clubs of Union County seek to inspire and enable young people, who need them most, to realize their full potential and have provided opportunity for youth since 1955. They are part of a national network of some 4,000 neighborhood-based facilities, Boys & Girls Clubs of America, which serves more than 4.6 million young people annually, in all 50 states and on U.S. military bases worldwide. Clubs provide guidance-oriented character development programs on a daily basis for children 6-18 years old, conducted by a full-time professional staff. Key Boys & Girls Club programs emphasize leadership development, education and career exploration, financial literacy, health and life skills, the arts, sports, fitness and recreation, and family outreach.
The Darden Foundation
The Darden Restaurants, Inc. Foundation is the charitable arm of Darden Restaurants, Inc. The Darden Foundation’s mission is to maintain a spirit of service and community engagement as defining characteristics of Darden’s family of restaurants – Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse, Bahama Breeze, Seasons 52, The Capital Grille, Eddie V’s and Yard House. Since 1995, the Darden Foundation has awarded more than $71 million in grants to leading nonprofit organizations that align with its mission and community priorities: Recipe for Success®, Preservation of Natural Resources and Good Neighbor grants. Through the Darden Harvest program, Darden Restaurants has also donated more than 77 million pounds of food to hunger relief agencies across the U.S. and Canada. In 2011, the Darden Foundation introduced the Restaurant Community Grants program that is dedicated to supporting local nonprofit organizations in the hundreds of communities where we live and serve. For more information, please visit www.dardenfoundation.com
