News Releases

PHILADELPHIA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--ACE Group today announced that the ACE Charitable Foundation is making a total of $200,000 in grants to five food organizations that are part of the Feeding America network. Feeding America is one of the nation’s largest domestic hunger relief organizations, and ACE’s grants are part of an Economic Crisis Funding Initiative to help offset the hardships faced by U.S. food banks in a recessionary economy. ACE’s grants will support five network partners of Feeding America located in Atlanta, Chicago, Philadelphia and New York. The beneficiaries are: Atlanta Community Food Bank, Greater Chicago Food Depository, Philabundance, and City Harvest and Food Bank for New York City, each of whom in turn supports hundreds of smaller organizations and food programs.

“ACE is committed to supporting programs that positively impact the communities and regions where our employees live and work,” said Brian Dowd, ACE’s Chief Executive Officer, Insurance-North America. “We’re pleased to partner with food banks in the Feeding America network in supporting hunger relief efforts in key cities throughout the United States. By helping to expand and improve the availability and quality of the food supply and the quality of life for families impacted by the economic downturn, we hope to make a significant contribution in cities where ACE maintains offices.”

The ACE Charitable Foundation’s contributions support the following hunger relief programs affiliated with Feeding America:

• Atlanta: Supporting a wide range of people in need, from children to the working poor, the Atlanta Community Food Bank provides food and other critical resources for low-income Georgians who suffer from hunger and food insecurity. ACE’s donation will help provide the nearly 600,000 additional meals needed for the increasing numbers of Georgian families facing job loss, foreclosure, and other hardships.
• Chicago: Greater Chicago Food Depository supports increased access to food distribution efforts and strengthens programs to combat poverty. ACE’s donation will be used to strengthen the capacity of its member agencies and to purchase food to offset declining donations and offer a nutritionally balanced mix of food donations to clients.
• Philadelphia: Philabundance seeks to end hunger and malnutrition in the Delaware Valley, by acquiring food and distributing it through organizations serving people in need. ACE’s grant will assist in providing an additional 1.5 million meals in the five-county area to offset the economic crisis and meet current needs.
• New York: Operating in the five boroughs of New York, City Harvest works to support food collection and distribution to people in need. ACE’s donation will help City Harvest’s collection and distribution of perishable food needing same-day transport. Food Bank for New York City supports procurement and distribution of food to more than 100 food assistance programs, as well as providing core programs, such as school nutrition programs, senior soup kitchens and government advocacy programs. ACE’s grant will be used to support the core food programs such as Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) outreach, which will provide education and access to clients about Federal and State food subsidy programs.

“More than forty nine million Americans – including seventeen million children – don’t have enough food to go around at mealtime, as a direct result of the current economic climate. We’re grateful that ACE is investing in a solution that will significantly impact and expand the availability of hunger relief and food distribution services in five major food banks throughout the United States,” said Vicki Escarra, President and Chief Executive Officer of Feeding America.

Feeding America and its network partners provide individuals and families with the resources to survive and even thrive. As the nation’s leading domestic hunger-relief charity, Feeding America’s network members supply food to more than twenty five million Americans each year, including nine million children and three million seniors. Serving the entire United States, more than two hundred member food banks support 63,000 agencies that address hunger in all of its forms. For more information, please visit www.feedingamerica.org.

The ACE Charitable Foundation assists less fortunate individuals and communities around the world in achieving and sustaining healthy lives. Through a combination of Foundation grants and employee volunteer initiatives, ACE focuses its support in the areas of education, the environment, and poverty and health.

The ACE Group is a global leader in insurance and reinsurance serving a diverse group of clients. Headed by ACE Limited (NYSE:ACE), the ACE Group conducts its business on a worldwide basis with operating subsidiaries in more than 50 countries. Additional information can be found at www.acelimited.com.