Starbucks to Volunteer in New Orleans

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX - News) announced today the participation of 10,000 of its partners (employees) in four days of community service projects across New Orleans from October 27 through 30. The events are part of the Starbucks 2008 Leadership Conference in New Orleans. The efforts represent the single largest block of community support in the history of New Orleans--mobilizing 10,000 people, contributing more than 54,000 volunteer hours and investing more than $1 million in local projects.

“Being involved in the communities we serve is part of our heritage and is ingrained in who we are as a company,” says Rodney Hines, Starbucks director of community investments. “We feel that New Orleans provides us with a unique opportunity to get involved in a big way--bigger even than the hours spent volunteering. Not only is New Orleans a wonderful host for our conference, but we can also work with its citizens to help rebuild community in this historic and culturally rich city.”

Attendees of the Starbucks Leadership Conference will participate in community service projects during the week. The projects are made possible with the help of the following associations and nonprofit organizations: Beacon of Hope Resource Center, Crescent City Art Project, Hike for KaTREEna (in cooperation with the New Orleans Department of Parks and Parkways), KaBOOM!, New Orleans City Park, New Orleans Food and Farm Network, Rebuilding Together New Orleans, and Trinity Christian Community.

The projects will take place in some of the New Orleans neighborhoods where there is momentum in recovery: Broadmoor, Gentilly, and Hollygrove, as well as in City Park and a school in the Garden District. The work will assist with the restoration of homes, parks, and schools--including painting, landscaping, cleaning up, planting trees, building playgrounds and creating artistic murals. All events have been organized with the assistance of these associations and local community-based groups to ensure that every project is of value to the New Orleans community.

These activities build on the support the company has provided the New Orleans community since hurricanes Rita and Katrina. In 2005, the Starbucks Foundation and Starbucks Coffee Company pledged $5 million over five years to assist in the recovery and rebuilding of the Gulf Coast.