WPNT hits the streets to help needy Chicagoans
Ever mindful that our success has been possible only through the support of the communities in which we live, WPNT, often in partnership with its clients, looks for ways to make a meaningful difference in the lives of others. Here is a look at some of the fun we had in giving back in this quarter.
More than 600 displaced Chicagoans received meals from WPNT Ltd. as part of its long time support of The Night Ministry. The Night Ministry is a non-denominational, non-profit organization, serving the city's most vulnerable, six nights a week, 52 weeks a year. WPNT staff donated, prepared and served the meals to adults, teens and children, along side The Night Ministry's inner city mobile health clinic. The WPNT Ltd. team will be back on the streets in July.
Also, WPNT Ltd. has begun financial support of Zacharias Center for victims for sexual abuse. The center offers 24-hour medical and legal advocacy, crisis intervention, counseling services for victims and their loved ones, educational prevention and law enforcement awareness programs. In its 30 years, Zacharias Center has grown from a grass roots, volunteer-based organization to a multi-faceted agency comprised of a Board of Directors, professional staff and trained volunteers.
From the Wixted Des Moines office, Kelly Field helped organize and coordinate the 2010 Spring Games for the Special Olympics there. Kelly is a member of the Special Olympics Management Team. About a thousand athletes competed in track & field events. The SO Management Team oversees programming and events each year, for 2,000 athletes throughout West Central Iowa.
Eileen Wixted and Lauri Freking provided Media Training gratis to a large Midwest school district to better respond to a rash of student deaths. Participants learned how to work with media before, during and after tragedies such as car accidents or suicides.
From Texas, WPNT continues its support of a long list of charities. Among them, the Houston office provided financial support to the Children's Cancer Research Fund. CCRF funds research at the University of Minnesota for preventing, treating and curing childhood cancer, as well as providing quality of life program for kids with cancer. In addition, the Houston Hospice receives financial support from WPNT. The non-profit organization provides in-home and residential end-of-life care.