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Corporate Philanthropy ReportBoeing Global Corporate Citizenship
An overview of The Boeing Company’s involvement in the communities where we have a business presence around the world
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Boeing takes its commitment to being a good corporate citizen very seriously. In fact, good corporate citizenship is a core value of our company and is integral to the way we conduct business around the globe. In addition to this being a social imperative for us, we see improving the quality of life in communities where we live and work as a key element to remaining viable and vital in today’s global marketplace.
Boeing’s commitment to good corporate citizenship is evi-denced both in and out of the workplace at all levels of the organization. In fact, members of our Executive Council are personally involved in their communities through service on nonprofit governance boards and other activities.
Just a few examples include Laurette Koellner, who heads up Boeing International. She serves on the Dean’s Exec-utive Council for the College of Business Administration at the University of Central Florida and is on the board of directors of the National Bureau of Asian Research.
James Bell, our chief financial officer, is on the national board of directors for New Leaders for New Schools, an organization profiled in this report.
Scott Carson, who leads the Commercial Airplanes busi-ness, is on the board of governors of the Washington State
community
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Jim McNerneyChairman, President and Chief Executive Officer
Andy goodwin photo
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Table of contents
IntroductionFinancials
Europe and IsraelFranceGermanyGreat BritainIsraelItalyRussiaSpainTurkey
Middle East
AfricaSouth/East West/Central
Asia PacificAustraliaChinaIndiaJapanSouth KoreaSoutheast Asia
North AmericaCanadaUnited States
Disaster ReliefContact Information
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University Foundation, while Jim Albaugh, Scott’s coun-terpart at Integrated Defense Systems, sits on the board of the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum.
We are both involved in our communities as well. Rick, who oversees our global cor-porate citizenship efforts, is passionate about bringing people and groups together to align and integrate educa-tion and workforce initiatives, and his community involve-ment reflects this. Among other activities, Jim is on the board of directors for the Field Museum in Chicago.
While good citizenship and all that entails can be a powerful tool in our communities, corporations cannot influence last-ing change alone. We believe the expertise to solve commu-nity problems lies in the local community. Boeing is proud to partner with a number of nonprofit and non-governmental organizations around the world that have this on-the-ground expertise, and this report spotlights a sampling of the good work that these organizations accomplish.
Good corporate citizenship is a journey, not an end in itself. Just as we look for new and more innovative ways to make our products and serve our customers, we always are looking for new and more innovative ways to serve the communities in which we live and work. It’s how we do business, and it’s how we approach the world.
MATT FERGUSON PHOTO
Rick Stephens Senior Vice President, Human Resources and Administration
Jim McNerneyChairman, President and Chief Executive Officer
Rick Stephens
Senior Vice President, Human Resources and Administration
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The Boeing Company strives to be a global corporate leader, working in concert with others to shape a world where individuals can thrive and every community is a vibrant place to live. We believe that by helping develop capabilities of people and the environment around them that we enable a world of endless opportunity.
As the pie charts on the following page indicate, the majority of our contributions are directed to the commu-nities in the United States where most of our employ-ees reside. Recognizing that a large portion of our cus-tomers, our partners—as well as an increasing number of our employees—live outside our borders, we must be as committed to those communities as we are to those in the United States.
It was with that intent that we launched a formal interna-tional corporate citizenship program in 2002. This report is intended to share that global perspective through the pictures and stories of those we have engaged with as
employees of Boeing and as citizens of the many nations of which we are a part.
Our goal is nothing less than to enable the development of communities so that their citizenry is educated, cre-ative, civic minded, environmentally conscious, healthy and economically self-sustained. It is with that goal in mind that we make our investments.
Those investments are much more than money. They include the sharing of intellectual capital and employ-ee community involvement—through both company- sponsored volunteerism and the Employees Community Fund of The Boeing Company, one of the largest employ-ee-owned and managed funds of its kind in the world.
As Boeing becomes increasingly more global, we expect that our community involvement will expand and mature—much like our relationships will expand and mature with our customers and partners—around the world.
About Boeing Corporate Philanthropy
Pictured is a woman in Sri Lanka, one of the countries affected by the 200� Southeast Asia tsunami. Boeing corporate and employee/ retiree contributions to tsunami-relief efforts totaled more than $�.5 million.PHOTO cOURTESy OF cARE (JOSH ESTEy)
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What We Give: Cash ContributionsBoeing corporate contributions are dispersed locally based on local need by a global network of dedicated individuals with detailed knowledge of our communities and the ability to place that knowledge into the context of the big picture.
We focus our contributions in the areas of arts, civic, environment, education, and health and human services. Each focus area has objectives that provide direction and detail to guide our community involvement. Locally, Global Corporate Citi-zenship representatives then further refine objectives for impact on assessed community needs.
Education$20,800,000
2006* Global Corporate Cash Contributions by Focus Area
2006* Employee/Retiree and Board Member Giving
2006* International Giving/Total Global Cash Contributions Budget
2006* International Corporate Cash Contributions
Health and Human Services$��,900,000
Civic$2,8�0,000
Arts$8,700,000
Environment$�,�20,000
Total: $48,550,000
Employees Community Fund**$�2,000,000
Boeing Leadership Gifts$���,000
Boeing Executive Board Gifts$���,000
Employee/ Retiree Gifts$9,��0,000
U.S. Contributions$�5,050,000
International Contributions$�,500,000
Total: $48,550,000
Total: $41,772,560
Middle East$�,295,000
Europe/Israel$�,�70,000
Asia Pacific $�5,000
Africa$2�0,000
Canada$�75,000
Total: $3,500,000
18%
6%
31%
43%
3%
77%
22%
.03%
.07%
92.8%
7.2%
37%42%
10%
5% 6%
* Pie charts on this page contain the best available data as of Nov. 15, 2006. The budget for cash contributions in 2006 is $48.5 million. Final 2006 data will be posted on our Web site (www.boeing.com) in early 2007.
** Preliminary estimate based on 2005 Employees Community Fund contributions
EUROPE AND ISRAEL
FRANCE GERMANY GREAT BRITAINISRAEL ITALY RUSSIA/COMMONWEALTH OF INdEPENdENT STATES SPAIN TURKEY
community
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FRANCE
Food for the SpiritThe relationship between Les Restaurants du Coeur
(“Les Restos”) and its patrons begins as an uneasy alli-ance. For many, however, what is initially perceived as a last resort is in actuality a new beginning.
Jean-Francois is one of the working poor in France. He earns 600 € monthly from his part-time job, far short of what he needs to support his five children. Filling a critical gap is Les Restos, which, among other services, provides a well-rounded variety of food for this family and others like it.
“The first time I went to Les Restos, I felt very embar-rassed. I didn’t want the children to know we were having difficulties. But we found there great comfort, both for the stomach and for the spirit,” Jean-Francois said.
Now, inspired by the kindness he has experienced, Jean-Francois volunteers at Les Restos. “When you see others giving the gift of time, it motivates us to do our best to change our personal situations for the better,” he said.
Litana, another Les Restos client, agrees but was ret-icent as well in the beginning. “When you’re hungry and you need to knock on Les Restos’ door, it is very hard at first. In fact, I couldn’t do it the first time; I ran in the opposite direction,” she recalled. “But then, the Les Res-tos’ team came to me at my home to tell me, ‘If you can-not do it, we are here to help.’ And they have.”
Created by French humorist, Coluche, 21 years ago as an anti-hunger organization, Les Restos has since expand-ed its outreach to include other activities than adult and infant food aid, such as personal services, infant support centers (i.e., Restos Bébés du Coeur), emergency hous-ing, and cultural and leisure activities as well as camions du Coeur, volunteer-staffed vans that deliver food to the needy during the cold winter months.
Through a major grant from Boeing, Les Restaurants du Coeur is able to operate this mobile winter campaign, in addition to its 1,900 permanent facilities or centres Restos. There, registered patrons obtain daily meals and a host of other services that are essential but are out of reach for people living near the poverty level.
Leatitia, a young mother who lived in the streets as a teen, managed to overcome her problems after the birth of her son. “At Les Restos du Coeur, I find food, a hair-dresser, a dentist, but above all, I find people I can count on,” she said.
Boeing France President Yves Galland explains that the company’s support of Les Restos’ winter campaign is an example of the company’s global philanthropic strat-egy, focusing on the fundamental needs of countries and communities where Boeing has a presence.
“Our philanthropic approach is not based on or driven by business need,” Galland said. “Rather, the goal is to give real help to the disadvantaged population living on the margins of French society and to invest the resources we have in the generous, supportive and exemplary Les Restos du Coeur organization,” he said.
Although the issues of hunger and poverty transcend borders, Francine Lebon, manager of sponsorships and grants for Les Restos du Coeur, was initially surprised when contacted by Boeing.
“At first, Boeing’s interest caught me off guard because it was one of the first non-French organizations to approach us. The relationship grew rapidly thanks to Boeing’s under-standing of our mission and its genuine desire to share in it,” Lebon said.
For that Lebon is grateful. Jean Francois, Litana, Leati-tia, and countless other Les Restos patrons would no doubt agree.
Fruits and vegetables are grown in one of the gardens owned by Les Restos du Coeur to help feed the hungry in the area. Here in Montreuil, a suburb of Paris, picking Batavia lettuce are Stéphane Seys (left) and Elbekkaye Nahi. Boeing France supports Les Restaurants du Coeur.
GillES ROllE / REA PHOTO
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GERMANY
The 14-year-old talk show host looks nervously at his audience. His guests on stage, Susi and Chantal, are argu-ing, and the situation is getting out of hand. Their dis-cussion of a proposal to ban mobile phones from school is becoming heated. Susi is angry because she feels her friend only communicates with her mobile and not with Susi. A mobile phone expert is asked to intercede, and he joins the discussion on the stage.
This “talk show” is a part of the STEP 21 bus tour, a pro-gram that reaches out to young people and encourages
them to examine and discuss topics such as tolerance and responsibility. The students of the eighth grade of the Frie-densburg School in Berlin took part in the program and pre-sented their results to teachers, students and local media. With a student body composed of 20 different nationalities, tolerance and respect for diversity are critical needs at Frie-densburg School. What’s more, the environment at Frie-densburg is typical of many schools in Berlin.
STEP 21, the Youth Initiative for Tolerance and Respon-sibility, provides media-oriented, school-based educational
Hard Lessons Made Easier
A dialogue about tolerance and responsibility using fun media tools facilitates a deeper under-standing of core democratic val-ues. Standing is a STEP 21 rep-resentative working with several students on a project.
PHOTO cOURTESy OF STEP 21
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The STEP 21 bus tour provides training for teachers and work-shops for students in schools in more distant locations.
PHOTO cOURTESy OF STEP 21
GERMANY
programs to facilitate dialogue about core democratic val-ues such as tolerance and responsibility. The program pro-vides schools with “media boxes” containing project-orient-ed teaching and educational materials such as radio and comic software, specially designed media, comics, films, videos, music, etc. The materials capitalize on teens’ natu-ral interest in media and how it works.
STEP 21 was founded in 1998 with the support of three international corporations—Bertelsmann, Daimler-Chrysler and Siemens. Sonja Lahnstein, STEP 21 co-founder, based the initiative on the belief that values such as tolerance and responsibility should be addressed inside and outside of school in a continuous dialogue.
“Youth unemployment and limited perspectives discour-age our young people from actively planning their lives. Those from families with a lower educational background and immigrant families are particularly disadvantaged,” said Lahnstein. “STEP 21 supports young people in the diffi-cult phase of life between school and professional occupa-tion. Our organization conveys the social competencies that young people need and that often are absent from school and family environments,” she added.
“Boeing, a global player and multi-cultural enterprise, exhibits social responsibility in Germany in an exempla-ry way,” Lahnstein said. “Non-governmental organizations such as STEP 21 depend on the support from business to increase the social and media competencies and training
ability of young people. This form of support or partnership is a step in the right direction.”
Boeing met with STEP 21 for the first time more than a year ago to assess opportunities for working together to meet both the organization’s objectives and Boeing’s philanthrop-ic strategies. Boeing supports the project STEP 21 through philanthropic grants and relies on the organization’s capabili-ties and experience to efficiently manage the project.
The Boeing-sponsored project enabled some 230 schools and youth institutions, many in socially disadvan-taged areas of the states of Berlin and Brandenburg, to work with the STEP 21 media box. This included training the trainers, introductory workshops, an interactive platform, a help hotline, visits and follow-up with the schools, evalua-tion of the results and dissemination activities.
“The cultural diversity that we have in Berlin is one of the major assets of the city but also presents it with chal-lenges in the educational sector. We believe that our joint project with STEP 21 will help deal with these challenges by encouraging teachers and students to focus on reinte-gration, tolerance and ethical values and by providing tools and training to do so in a fun way,” said Béatrice Bracklo, Communications director and Global Corporate Citizenship representative for Boeing Germany.
Bracklo reports that Boeing will continue to provide support to STEP 21 in 2007, enabling other schools and students to benefit from the program in the same way Friedensburg Oberschule did this year.
Boeing, a global player and multi-cultural enterprise, meets
the obligations of its social responsibility in Germany
in an exemplary way.”—Sonja Lahnstein, co-founder,
STEP 21
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Imagining the Possibilities
Innovation is the hallmark of the Advanced Manufactur-ing Research Centre (AMRC), a partnership between Boeing and the University of Sheffield’s faculty of Engineering. But rarely are discoveries met with squeals of joy as they were one day in July when students from Fir Vale High School turned the facility into their very own exploratorium.
The educational field trip was an extension of Boeing’s ongoing support for The Prince’s Trust, the leading youth charity in the United Kingdom (U.K.), and one of its key initiatives, the xl clubs. The xl network is a school- and team-based program of personal development for pupils who are at risk of truancy, under-achievement and expul-
GREAT BRITAIN
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GREAT BRITAIN
sion. Students in years 10 and 11 meet for three or more hours weekly within the context of the school day. The clubs are deliberately informal, but behind this informali-ty lies a rigorous curriculum that challenges members to work together to achieve goals relating to their education, training, employment and future.
“It’s a sad statistic that one in 20 young people in the U.K. leave school at the age of 16 with no qualifications for specific employment. The xl club scheme aims to combat this trend by providing guidance and support,” said Nice-tte Makkinga, Boeing Communications manager and Glob-al Corporate Citizenship representative for the U.K.
The morning of the Fir Vale excursion, engineers con-vened for a presentation of Personal Air Vehicles of the Future (PAV) designs that students had drafted and refined in the weeks preceding the visit. Afterward, in a collabor-ative effort reflective of day-to-day workings at the Cen-
Timothy Scherer, AMRC’s Public Relations and Communications manager; Holger Krain, research assistant; and James Hughes, Quality manager (standing, left to right) worked with the kids from Fir Vale High School during their recent visit to the AMRC.
PHOTO cOURTESy OF AMRc
ter, researchers and teens tackled the hypothetical task at hand—applying the principles of aerodynamic design to the creation of a new civilian aircraft. After a brief demon-stration of the technologies and equipment employed by the AMRC, the students regrouped to apply their learning to a model airplane-building activity.
External visits such as this play a key role in highlight-ing for students the types of opportunities that are avail-able to them after leaving school,” said Makkinga. “Some had no idea that the center—or the career opportunities it represented—even existed,” she said.
Since its founding by the Prince of Wales in 1976, The Prince’s Trust has supported more than a half million dis-advantaged young people across the U.K., providing them with business start-up support, personal development, mentoring and advice. Because of its education focus, The Prince’s Trust’s xl club program is of special interest to Boeing. Since 2004, Boeing has provided funding to ensure that the xl clubs in South Yorkshire and the most disadvantaged areas in London can continue to provide essential support to 14- and 16-year-olds who face dif-ficulties in education. Cash grants have helped fund 141 xl clubs serving 650 young people. An additional grant is earmarked for 2007.
“Boeing’s financial support has played a vital part in helping 74 percent of the young people in all of our pro-grams go on to further education, training or employment when they leave school,” said Sarah Winchester, corpo-rate partnerships manager of The Prince’s Trust.
“Without the donations made to our South Yorkshire and London programs, we would not have had been able to provide this crucial support to so many young people struggling in school,” she added.
Dr. Rosemary Gault (far left) and some of the pupils of Fir Vale High School examine the casing of a jet engine during a visit to the Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC), a part-nership between Boeing and the University of Sheffield’s faculty of Engineering.
PHOTO cOURTESy OF yORkSHiRE POST NEwPAPERS (cHRiS lAwTON)
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NATAL clients often engage in the therapeutic process of cre-ating art in order to reveal their deepest feelings. This picture indicates that this particular client is beginning to adopt a more positive attitude toward life thanks to NATAL.
PHOTO cOURTESy OF NATAl
Orit was 16 years old when she witnessed a suicide bombing at a mall in Natanya, Israel, that would change her life forever. She was sitting on a crowded bus that stopped directly in front of a suicide bomber seconds before he blew himself up. Immediately following the blast, Orit and the other witnesses on the bus ran out into the carnage. Her senses were overwhelmed with the horrific scene in front of her. Recalling her experience, she says, “I ran through the depths of hell that day.”
Although Orit was physically unharmed, she was hospi-talized for four days following the attack due to acute trau-ma and shock. In the year following the terrorist attack, Orit developed severe Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). She couldn’t sleep, was afraid to leave her home, refused to travel on buses, and developed other irrational fears.
Unfortunately, Orit was not eligible to receive subsi-dized government therapy because she was not phys-ically injured in the attack. Like many Israelis who are injured in terrorist attacks, Orit and her family lacked the
financial resources to obtain private therapy. But Orit was in desperate need of professional psychological services as her life was unraveling.
NATAL: Israel Trauma Center for Victims of Terror and War, came to her aid. Boeing Israel has been a support-er of the organization for several years. In fact, in 2005, NATAL received a grant from the company to provide sub-sidized therapy to 10 individuals
Orit joined one of the support groups in Natanya. The mental health professional leading the support group rec-ognized Orit’s urgent need for intensive therapy, and soon after she began therapy sessions with Udit, a freelance therapist who works for NATAL in Natanya.
For the first two months of therapy, Udit focused on help-ing Orit process her trauma and regain the internal strength that she had lost as a result. Udit taught her various relax-ation techniques, and slowly Orit’s emotional and psycho-logical wounds began to heal. In addition to her therapy sessions, Orit began to partake in group therapy sessions in NATAL’s Social Therapeutic Club. Here, she was able to meet others who had similar experiences to her own while engaging in the therapeutic process of creating art.
Oftentimes, in art therapy, she painted baby birds and small animals being held and protected by a strong pair of arms. Toward the end of her therapy, she came to realize that the strong arms in all of her paintings symbolized Udit. She, in turn, was the baby bird being cradled. During her last session of therapy with Udit, she gave her this note—
Back from the Depths
ISRAEL
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“I came to you as a wounded baby bird desperately look-ing for solid ground. You took me into your arms and pro-tected me from the world. You believed in me, took care of me, and helped me find the strength to go on living. And now, after several years, my wounds have healed, and I have the power to fly again.”
Today Orit is a fully functioning, stable, healthy young woman. She works full time for a large Israeli company and no longer exhibits symptoms of PTSD.
This story is one of many, as NATAL’s mental health professionals have provided subsidized therapeutic services to thousands of individuals who suffer from PTSD and acute trauma as a result of terrorism, war and military service.
Judith Yovel Recanati, NATAL’s founder and chairper-son, explained the significance of the Boeing grant. “Boe-ing has helped us fulfill our mission of providing support to individuals who have suffered immeasurable traumas and tragedy as a result of war and terrorism. Recognition
and support from Boeing helps put NATAL on the map of international nonprofits who really make a difference in the world,” she said.
To date, NATAL works with 84 professional freelance psychiatrists, psychologists and therapists throughout Israel, all of whom specialize in PTSD. The aim of each and every NATAL mental health therapist is the same—to help their patients overcome their traumas and return to a nor-mal level of daily functioning.
Orit and others like her are happy to be among the organization’s success stories.
Saar Uziely (pictured right), clinical coordinator of Psychological Services at NATAL, conducts a therapy session with a client. NATAL works with professional freelance psychiatrists, psychol-ogists and therapists, all of whom specialize in Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.
PHOTO cOURTESy OF NATAl
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Protecting Differences
The lesson in the following story by Italian writer Claudio Imprudente beautifully illustrates the mission of nonprof-it organization Associazione Italiana Persone Down (AIPD), the Italian Association for People with Down Syndrome.
Once upon a time there was a king called Trentatrè who wanted to be fair to all.
“In my kingdom,” he thought, “everyone shall be treated equally.” In a generous gesture, he released his canary from its silver cage. The bird thanked the king and flew away.
Satisfied, the king did the same with a goldfish, but it fell from the window and died. The king, surprised, thought, “Maybe he didn’t like equality.” He told the court jester, who suggested a change in tactics. So the king put his remaining fish in the river, and they happily swam away.
One newborn out of 1,000 in Italy is affected by Down syndrome. Experts say these children usually can do most things that any young child can do, although they generally start learning these things later than other children.
PHOTO cOURTESy OF AiPD
Next, he put his blackbird in the river, but it drowned. “Maybe he didn’t like equality,” the king thought again.
The king asked his jester, “What do I need to do to be fair to everybody?”
“Sire, to treat everyone the same way you have to treat them all differently, because each one is different, unique,” replied the court fool.
Since 1979, AIPD has been an advocate for the social, mental and linguistic development of people with Down syndrome, protecting their rights and assisting their families with issues like education and full inclusion in school and society.
One newborn out of 1,000 is affected by Down syn-drome in Italy. Experts say that children with Down syn-
ITALY
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drome usually can do most things that any young child can do; however, they generally start learning these things later than other children.
But, thanks to new treatments and increased attention to their needs, the outlook for these children is far bright-er than it once was. Their life spans have increased dra-matically, and today an increasing number of adults with Down syndrome live semi-independently in community group homes where they take care of themselves, devel-op friendships, and work in their communities.
Even so, their lives are far from simple. Everyday obsta-cles include bureaucratic red tape and lack of awareness and understanding among the general public—issues that are being addressed with the help of funding from Boeing.
To assist those who need an authoritative source of information, in 2004 Boeing provided financial support for the organization’s Telefono D project, a telephone help line that serves as a comprehensive resource for issues faced by individuals with Down syndrome and their families.
Common inquiries involve how to request public ser-vices and clarification on basic—but not always respect-ed—rights. One mother called to say that her employ-er would not allow her to take time off to assist her son. Another family was told, wrongly, that their adult Down
syndrome son could not obtain an invalid pension unless his civil rights were first revoked. In these and other cases, AIPD came to the rescue with accurate informa-tion and advice on how to best proceed.
Besides helping establish the telephone service, Boe-ing’s 2004 grant helped AIPD improve its Web site (www.aipd.it) with useful information (including a frequently asked questions section) and an online inquiry form. Fur-ther, a new, improved edition of Quaderno AIPD, a guide to assistance and protection, was published.
The information initiative has been a resounding suc-cess. Since Boeing became involved with AIPD, the num-ber of requests for help has risen by 30 percent.
While the number of people served is impressive, the impact on the dignity and self-determination of AIPD cli-ents is too great to measure.
The outlook for children with Down syndrome is far brighter than it once was, with an increasing number of adults living semi-independently in community group homes where they take care of themselves and develop friendships.
PHOTO cOURTESy OF AiPD
ITALY
ITALY
Bedside MannersAlone and frightened, a six-year-old girl lies in a hos-
pital bed in a foreign country. She does not understand what is being said to her by the people in white coats and is unable to tell them how she feels. She is afraid and unreceptive toward the doctors and medical staff, mak-ing it almost impossible for them to treat her.
Fortunately, the hospital has a wonderful resource for just such situations. The “hospital clowns” of the Soccor-so Clown program are summoned for a visit with the girl.
Although the hospital clowns work closely with the doc-tors and hospital administration, they enter the patient’s room only at the invitation of the child. This is often the only time in the child’s hospital stay when young patients can decide for themselves what is best.
At first, the young girl is skeptical and distrustful, but after a few brief visits from the clowns, who are skilled in working gently and unobtrusively with young patients, she starts to relax and realizes her fears were unfounded. She begins to smile and then laugh, her anxiety now gone. She even per-forms “fake magic” for the clowns and the other children and staff members she encounters during her stay.
Yury Olshansky (also known as “Dr. Maisbaglia,” left), general director of Soccorso Clown, and brother Vladimir (“Dr. Bobo”), artistic director, apply special skills to the needs of chronically and critically ill children in hospitals around Italy.
PHOTO cOURTESy OF SOccORSO clOwN
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ITALY
In her improved state of mind, doctors and medical staff are able to approach the child and treat her condi-tion. She now looks forward to the visits and runs to greet her friends whenever they return to see her and the other hospitalized young people.
The Soccorso Clown program is a nationally recog-nized group of hospital clowns—experienced profession-al actors, not volunteers—with specialties ranging from music to magic, and trained to apply their special skills to the needs of chronically and critically ill children in hospi-tals throughout Italy. In fact, the program recently has been adopted by the region of Tuscany as the training and work standard for professional hospital clowns in Italy.
They do not wear heavy make-up or dress outlandish-ly—although their medical equipment does include “funny bone detectors” and “smile measuring sticks.” They understand the world of the hospitalized child and are always considerate in their dealings with the children.
Since it was formed in 1999 (known first as “Clown Aid,” then in 1999 as Soccorso Clown), the program has helped more than 60,000 hospitalized children and their families face serious illness with a positive attitude in an atmosphere of humor and relaxation. Stress is replaced by moments of joy five times a week, 44 weeks a year, brought directly to the bedsides of critically or chronically ill children.
Boeing provided cash grants to the Soccorso Clown program in 2005 and 2006 to support two projects at Bam-bino Gesu’ Pediatric Hospital in Rome that targeted both the infectious diseases and AIDS wards. Both projects have been deployed and have been successfully completed.
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“We have been very impressed with the mission of Soccorso Clown, especially the immediate and direct impact that this program has on children, their families and the hospital staff,” said Antonio De Palmas, Commu-nications director and Global Corporate Citizenship rep-resentative for Boeing Italy. “But it was only after we went to see the hospital clowns in action and talked to the doc-tors that we could truly understand how hospital stays can be made more tolerable through this program.”
Based on the Clown Care Unit of the Big Apple Circus in the United States, Soccorso Clown has proved to be a powerful partner with traditional medical therapy. In fact, The American Pediatrics Journal (Oct. 2005) published research confirming that pre-operative stress in children is reduced by 50 percent when hospital clowns are there to offer companionship and support.
Professor Alberto Vierucci, director of Pediatrics at Meyer Hospital in Florence, concurs. “It has been scien-tifically demonstrated that the clowns’ presence reduces pain and suffering, often helping to lessen the child’s need for pain medication.”
For Dr. Guido Castelli-Gattinaro, who works in the AIDS Unit of the Bambino Gesu Hospital in Rome, seeing was believing. “There was a thirteen-year-old child diagnosed in the last stages of AIDS in the Immunology ward. After hav-ing illustrated the delicacy of the situation, I was able to con-vince my colleagues to introduce the hospital clowns to the child,” Dr. Castelli-Gattinaro said. “Their visit improved her condition so much so that it was possible to discharge her, which was beyond the expectations of all those involved.”
Tiziana Scrocca (also known as “Dr. Pasticcio,” left) performs her “magical treatment” to a rapt audi-ence of patients. Since 2004, the Soccorso Clown program has ben-efited more than 60,000 hospitalized children and their families.
PHOTO cOURTESy OF SOccORSO clOwN
RUSSIA/CIS
Ending the IsolationWhen Yulia Egenburg was born with Down syndrome,
the shock shattered her family. Doctors advised the fam-ily to abandon the baby. Yulia’s mother could not accept such callous advice. Her father, unable to face the chal-lenge of raising a child with Down syndrome, left.
Time proved the doctors wrong. When she was five, Yulia enrolled in Downside Up Early Intervention Centre in Moscow. Initially, the sheltered girl clung to her moth-er. But the special form of therapy, which uses music to improve coordination, speech and other communica-tion skills, gradually transformed the girl. After a year of speech and music sessions, she began to expand her vocabulary and spend time playing with other children without her mother by her side. Now, singing is Yulia’s favorite thing to do. She mimics the teacher’s piano play-ing, and plays “school” at home.
“Yulia asks me to turn on music, starts dancing, and then places her dolls the same way as her speech and music teacher does. Then the lesson begins. She sings a song to them, tells them a poem, and practices a finger play,” her mother said.
Downside Up Early Intervention Centre is the only insti-tution in Russia that provides professional help to Down syndrome children and their families. For Yulia and chil-dren like her, Downside Up is one of the few educational and developmental resources available. Early intervention programs are scarce, and attitudes among many doctors, educators and society in general are that Down syndrome children have limited potential.
Children pictured here take part in weekly speech and music ther-apy sessions at Downside Up Early Intervention Centre (pictured here) to improve speech, rhythmic coordination and other skills.
PHOTO cOURTESy OF DOwNSiDE UP
“We are striving to use our resources for a positive impact and to create strong
partnerships between business and society.”
Olga kostrubina, Global corporate citizenship representative, Boeing Russia
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Each year, 60 children take part in weekly speech and music therapy sessions designed to improve speech, rhythmic coordination and other communication skills that will help them integrate into society and prepare them for admittance to educational institutions.
Parents learn how to use music at home for their child’s development. In the long run, Downside Up con-tributes to ending isolation of child and parent from the community and encourages parents’ return to an active social life. In 2006 alone, more than 750 families from throughout Russia were helped.
Downside Up was founded in 1996 by British and French businessmen and their relatives who were con-cerned by the plight of Down syndrome children. Boeing’s involvement with the organization dates almost to its beginning. The company has embraced Downside Up’s mission with financial support, while employees have opened their hearts by donating money, furniture, and equipment. Employees also have participated in the Red Square Charity Bike, a massive fund- and awareness-building event televised nationally.
Irina Menshenina, Downside Up funding and marketing director, praised Boeing’s continued involvement. “Boe-
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ing’s support means a lot to us given that Downside Up receives no support from the state and depends solely on the support of the private sector. Also, in Russia, cor-porations are just starting to be involved in philanthropy. Boeing sets a good example for other companies.”
Boeing Russia’s Global Corporate Citizenship repre-sentative, Olga Kostrubina, explained how the company’s involvement with Downside Up exemplifies Boeing’s philan-thropic strategy. “Boeing seeks to understand and respond to the needs of the local community. Creating equal oppor-tunities for challenged, underserved populations is an out-growth of that concern. Supporting this charitable effort is our social investment in the community. We are striving to use our resources for a positive impact and to create strong partnerships between business and society,” she said.
Yulia Egenburg (left) practices every day with her speech thera-pist at Downside Up, where she enrolled when she was five years old. In 2006 alone, more than 750 families from throughout Russia were helped by this organization.
PHOTO cOURTESy OF DOwNSiDE UP
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Seeing the Light
SPAIN
Kids enjoy time with moms in the play room at the Nuevo Amanecer facility. Pictured left to right are clients Victoria Herrera Duran, Constanza Salamanca Marquez, José Daniel Lee Salamanca and Mónica Poveda Mena.
JOSé ANTONiO ROJO PHOTO
Mónica is 32 years old and has a seven-year-old child. She is a former victim of domestic violence. She doesn’t remember how it all started; she only knows that after having suffered abuse for more than four years, one day she made the decision to leave Barcelona and run away from her partner.
“He made me feel worthless. I wasn’t able to do any-thing without his supervision and approval. He called me every day, so many times that I started to hate my cell phone,” she said. Mónica moved from place to place in fear until one day someone told her about the Asociación Nuevo Amanecer and its house of refuge.
She came to this Asociación at the end of 2005. It helped to be with people who understood what she was going through. Today she is a totally new woman, free and feeling much more daring than before. Mónica currently works at the Asociación where she’s in charge of the nurs-ery, providing support to more than 15 women and 20 chil-dren who currently live in the house.
Not everyone is as lucky as Mónica. During the first nine months of the year, there have been 47,485 cases just like hers, and more than 59 women have died as a conse-quence of their partners’ violence.
The current focus of the Asociación Nuevo Amanec-er was influenced by the public’s growing awareness of the problem. At the beginning, the Asociación was devot-ed to rehabilitating young drug addicts. In 1997, because of the steep increase of female victims of domestic vio-lence as well as a personal connection to the problem, Milagros Rodríguez led the Asociación in starting a shel-ter to help abused women and their children to recover and build new lives.
Asociación Nuevo Amanecer provides medical, psycho-logical, educational, legal and social support to its clients and runs a 24-hour hotline that receives hundreds of calls on a daily basis from women in need of some kind of coun-seling. More than 571 women and 547 children have sought refuge at the Asociación since it opened its doors in 1997.
But with an ever increasing number of women and chil-dren seeking shelter from abuse, the Asociación recently found itself in need of extra space to care for them. A grant from Boeing Spain made this possible.
“Boeing Spain decided to support this effort because it was apparent that Asociación Nuevo Amanecer was doing outstanding work in addressing this dramatic issue,” said Chantal Dorange, Communications director and Glob-al Corporate Citizenship representative for Boeing Spain. “We knew our contribution would make a difference to the people being helped by the Asociación.”
That certainly has been the case. The contribution helped renovate more than 20 areas, making previously unsuitable rooms habitable and totally restoring a kitchen, bathrooms and a dining room. A large refrigerator has been installed as well as a first-aid station and other necessities. Thanks to the renovation, Nuevo Amanecer’s shelter can now support an additional 80 women and 60 children.
According to Beatriz Quintana, a volunteer working at Asociación Nuevo Amanecer, “Whenever someone is a victim of abuse and has had to leave it all behind, the ability to come to a place where you can stay comfortably with your children really helps to speed up the recovery process. That’s why our top priority was to improve the quality of our facilities.”
This good work has not gone unnoticed. Madrid’s Regional Government recognized the outstanding work delivered by Nuevo Amanecer, providing a new shelter house where the organization can help even more women to see the light at the end of the tunnel.
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Juan, María and Esther are students in their second year of secondary school. But today, instead of their nor-mal mathematics, Spanish and geography classes, they will be taking part in workshops on self-esteem, social skills and decision making. Their school is one of the 197 centers taking part in the drug-addiction prevention pro-gram run by Asociación Proyecto Hombre.
Proyecto Hombre was founded in 1984 with the mis-sion of offering a solution to the problem of drug addiction.
The Good FightUsing an educational-therapeutic system, this nonprof-it organization helps drug addicts move from dependency to independence and become useful members of society. The organization currently has 26 centers in 15 Spanish regions, which help more than 16,000 drug addicts a year.
According to Juan Francisco Orsi, director of the Madrid Prevention Program, “At Proyecto Hombre, we are very conscious of how important it is to start aware-ness campaigns among the youngest members of soci-ety. At first, we believed that information was the best prevention. Then we realized that prevention was much more far-reaching and information is just one part of it. That is why we set up the “Entre Todos” (“All Together”) project, with the main goal of involving families, together with the schools and kids, in the prevention process.”
But despite broad efforts aimed at warning young Spaniards about drug and alcohol addiction, an increas-ing number are starting to use tobacco, alcohol and other types of drugs as early as 13 years old.
“When we were looking for an organization to sup-port, we were struck by Proyecto Hombre’s work in the area of prevention,” said Chantal Dorange, Communica-tions director and Global Corporate Citizenship represen-tative for Boeing Spain. “Helping to get this message to as many young people and their parents as possible is assisting the fight against substance abuse,” she said.
With the help of Boeing Spain and the excellent work of Proyecto Hombre, more than 54,000 people, including students, teachers and parents at 197 schools, took part in the drug addiction prevention program in 2004. That number jumped to 90,000 in 2005. The project, which
SPAIN
The Proyecto Hombre team plans curriculum for students. Pictured from left to right are Juan Francisco Orsi, director of the Madrid Prevention Program, and collaborators Ana Maria Garcia, Susana Delgado, Javier Cabañero, Amaia Oña and Patricia Vázquez.
JOSé ANTONiO ROJO PHOTO
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The team reviews upcoming events in which students may be interested in participating. Pictured are (left to right), Ana Maria Garcia, Susana Delgado and Javier Cabañero.
JOSé ANTONiO ROJO PHOTO
“We want to firmly establish the prevention program in
the primary school system to ensure that children are made
aware as soon as possible before becoming at risk.”
—Adela Ríos, press officer, Asociación Proyecto Hombre
initially was only for young people in their second year of secondary education, has been expanded to include third- and fourth-year secondary school students and 5th and 6th graders in elementary school.
“But there is still a great amount of work to be done,” according to Proyecto Hombre press officer Adela Ríos. “We want to firmly establish the prevention program in the primary school system to ensure that children are made aware as soon as possible before becoming at risk. And we have increasingly tried to involve families so that they can act as educators in this mission as well.
“We also aim to develop programs using new technol-ogies, which we hope will expand our reach,” she contin-ued. “In short, we are determined to use all the resources possible so that the plague of drug addiction is no longer part of Spanish family life.”
It was the year of devastation. Two earthquakes hit Turkey in 1999, both above seven on the Richter scale. The first one was in August. The second one came that November when the deep wounds of the first one were still quite raw. The epicenter was Bolu, approximately 200 km from both Istanbul and Ankara. As is usually the case in these disasters, the children suffered the most.
Founded in 1886, Inkilap Elementary School is among the oldest schools in Bolu. It has 650 students and is supported mostly from families who have to stretch to make ends meet in these difficult times. But times became even more difficult during the disaster. Worst of
Back on Solid Ground
all, hope—the most important element in human surviv-al—was scarce, almost nonexistent.
“We were all in a state of shock after the earthquake,” said Sabri Satiroglu, headmaster of Inkilap Elementary
The Boeing annex to the Inkilap Elementary School (pictured) was constructed in compliance with the specifications of the Turkish construction code for earthquake zones. Eight class-rooms, restrooms, and two teacher’s rooms were built in a cen-trally heated area of 660 square meters.
PHOTO cOURTESy OF iNkilAP ElEMENTARy ScHOOl
TURKEY
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School in Bolu. “That’s exactly when we got to know how much Boeing cares.”
The construction of the Boeing annex to the Inkilap Elementary School started the following June. It was constructed in compliance with the specifications of the Turkish code of construction for earthquake zones. Eight classrooms, restrooms and two teachers’ rooms were built in a centrally heated area of 660 square meters. Boeing and the Ministry of Education provided the fur-nishings for the annex.
There was much to celebrate in September 2000 when the academic year started. The students recited poems that they memorized and danced in their folkloric cos-tumes. “Boeing did the right thing by helping this school,” said Mehmet Ali Turker, governor of Bolu, as he cut the ribbon to open the Boeing annex. “Our young children will benefit greatly by this generous gift and will always remember Boeing, which was with them during their time of need.” Hope was back in the air.
“The first time you assist someone, you’re helping. The second time you help, it is because you care,” said Greg Pepin, president of Boeing Turkey. In keeping with that sentiment, a computer lab and a science lab were the next Boeing-funded projects.
Ayca Karasu Bekin of Boeing Turkey recalls the thrill of one young student visiting the computer lab. “I touched a computer!” the boy exclaimed in amazement. Every-one was enchanted by the science lab as well, which was something the children had never seen before.
Boeing continued to care and over the years the help continued as well. Hope had to be sustained. A stand-alone library was constructed and fully furnished with furniture and books.
Later, the library was followed by sporting goods, which led to regional placement for the Inkilap Elementary School volleyball team—widely known as the “Boeing Team” because their uniforms sport the Boeing logo.
Next came the wall lockers; and while some may con-sider them non-essential for this school, these proved to be a very important element for the students who yearned for some personal space after living in such small quarters in their houses.
“We were ranked second to last place in our regional academic testing. Now we are ranked as the second best school in the Bolu region,” says Ali Riza Karaibrahimoglu, the newly appointed headmaster. “Boeing has every right
to be proud as this elevated ranking was achieved with Boeing’s contributions.”
Last but not least, Boeing sends students from Inkilap Elementary School to Space Camp located in Izmir every summer and winter break.
“Inkilap School has been a great opportunity for Boe-ing to give back to the people of Turkey,” said Pepin. “Our involvement here conveys Boeing’s commitment to improving the quality of education in the communities where we live and work.”
Inkilap is just one example of this commitment. Since 2000, Boeing has supplied funds for fully equipping com-puter labs for 11 different grade schools in almost every region of Turkey and has completely renovated three schools in the most deprived regions of the country.
Inkilap School is now a short stopover for Boeing peo-ple traveling by car between Ankara and Istanbul. They come for inspiration and a cup of “bitter coffee.” Turk-ish tradition states that bitter coffee will be remembered for 40 years. No doubt Boeing, its dedication to the edu-cation of the children of Bolu, and its efforts to keep hope alive will be remembered in the hearts of these children for even longer than that.
The new computer lab in the Boeing annex fascinated the students, many of whom had not seen a computer before. “I touched a computer!” one boy exclaimed in amazement.
PHOTO cOURTESy OF iNkilAP ElEMENTARy ScHOOl
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MIDDLE EAST
MIddLE EAST
community
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While teen years are typically filled with doubt and angst about the future, the situation can be more com-plex in countries like Bahrain, where tradition permeates many aspects of society. Take the case of a senior at the Al Hedaya Secondary School for Boys. His father had raised him to believe unquestioningly that one day he would work in the government Ministry; a good job, but one for which he lacked passion. What’s more, the boy felt powerless to change the situation because he knew no other options.
In 2005, an alternative came in the guise of Ali Al Jana-hi, an executive with the Bank of Bahrain and Kuwait and a volunteer with inJAz Bahrain, part of the worldwide organization Junior Achievement (JA). Over the next ten weeks, his Success Skills program challenged the boy and his classmates on every level.
Exercises prepare students to make informed, intel-ligent decisions about their future and acquire sought-after skills for the business world. Personal presentation, CV development and interviewing techniques provide a glimpse of life after school. Most importantly, students emerge with a better understanding of the relationship between what they learn in the classroom and real life.
“I used to come to school just because I had to. Today, I look forward to learning more and working harder because of my future,” said the boy. “This experience has given me an opportunity to re-open discussions with my father about my career. I can look at different career opportuni-ties or start my own business and be an entrepreneur. The sky is the limit,” he said.
Like its JA counterparts throughout the world, inJAz Bahrain leverages partnerships between business and education to foster, recognize and reward outstanding
Power to Changeperformance while encouraging creativity, fun, and pro-fessional growth and development. Developing compe-tency skills, shaping attitudes toward work, providing mentors and role models from the community, and affirm-ing productive behaviors are strategies utilized to prepare students for the future.
“The top priority and future of the Arab world is the youth,” said John B. Craig, president, Boeing Middle East. “Incorporating inJAz Bahrain programs in the classroom is an accomplishment in the Arab education system. Pro-grams that promote entrepreneurship and encourage young Arabs to shape their individuality and values in a rapidly changing world align to our overall social strategy. Ultimately, being a good corporate citizen by supporting the youth of the region will bring stability and further eco-nomic wealth here,” Craig said.
Boeing’s partnership with the fledgling organization consists of volunteer hours and a grant that has provided programs to 30 classrooms in nine public schools and will create student centers serving 27,000 students. The cen-ters will provide students computer and reference resourc-es, including access to a virtual student center that will contain information on careers, setting up a business, and continuing education. It also will link Bahrain students with other JA students worldwide via the Internet.
“It gives me great pleasure to associate inJAz Bah-rain with one of the world’s leading companies—Boe-ing,” said Sheikha Hessa bint Khalifa Al Khalifa, executive director inJAz Bahrain. “Their contribution has achieved the goals of inspiring the youth of Bahrain. This is clear-ly seen in the student’s performance and enhancement of their personal economic and business skills. Imple-mentation of inJAz programs in the classroom helps cre-ate leaders and innovators. Our thanks go to the talented team at The Boeing Company,” she said.
MIDDLE EAST
Students are guided by volunteer May Al Sayegh (standing), during their Girls Entrepreneurship Program exercises. The goal of inJAz Bahrain is to prepare students to make informed, intel-ligent decisions about their future and acquire sought-after skills for the business world.
PHOTO cOURTESy OF iNJAz BAHRAiN
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AFRICA
SOUTH ANd EAST REGIONSWEST ANd CENTRAL REGIONS
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In the northern part of South Africa lies the province of Limpopo, home of beautiful forests and grasslands. Yet it’s also an area that has some of the nation’s hottest temper-atures and inconsistent rainfall.
The heat can play havoc on families and communities, especially in rural areas where students attend schools an hour or two from any town. Worried parents know their children will need to compete for higher-skilled jobs in an economy recovering from policies of the past.
Yet in a typical rural Limpopo school, there is no running water. Rising temperatures not only can disrupt the concen-tration of students and teachers, but it also can force the school day to be curtailed, if not canceled, because of a lack of water. That shortage also limits the use of the few toilets that are installed. Remaining options are inconvenient pit latrines that require expensive chemicals for sanitation.
In March 2001, Boeing opened its South Africa office, connecting the regions of southern and east Africa. A Ghana office also opened, linking west and central Africa. The goal of Boeing Africa is to build strong relationships between Boeing and government, business and commu-nity leaders on the continent.
Boeing Africa’s community projects focused on two areas: education and health. Among the organizations supported by Boeing Africa that assist in these areas is
A Well of Hopethe Water for Schools Project, which helps schools in Limpopo build wells for clean water. The organization requires participating schools to raise a quarter of the money needed to bore a well and supply the accompa-nying hardware such as a pump and tanks before outside donations are added. “Local involvement helps sustain-ability,” said Janet Parkin, board member and administra-tor of Water for Schools.
Since this project started five years ago, Boeing has been the largest contributor, sponsoring wells at 12 schools so far. The water is used not only for drinking and sanitary facilities, but it’s also used for hands-on instruc-tion in gardening and farming.
Some school gardens supply vegetables for school lunch programs. Others sell extra produce to raise money for the school. “With a better learning environment,” Par-kin said, “some of the schools have found an increase in the pass rate.” The entire region benefits when school principals can raise money selling surplus water to par-ents after school hours—leading to healthier community gardens and livestock.
Kuseni Maluleke, principal of Hanyani Secondary School, said to Boeing, “You have given us health for our communities, a future for our students and hope for all those yet to start school.”
Left: The heat can play havoc on families and communities, especially in rural areas where students attend schools an hour or two from any town. The new well has allowed students like this one to enjoy fresh drinking water every day.
Right: Some school gardens supply vegetables for school lunch programs, while others sell extra produce to raise money for the school. Pictured are students learning about agricul-ture while tending the school garden.
PHOTO cOURTESy OF cASSi kOTzE
SOUTH AND EAST AFRICA
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The story behind the Niger Delta Friendship Library reads like an epic, complete with warring tribes, selfless heroes and visitors from afar. A happy ending, howev-er, was never in doubt, thanks to the generous and coop-erative spirit in which the project was conceived and the devotion of the people involved.
What began as a dialogue between peace advocates at a conference evolved into a library that would change the social landscape of the Oporodza region in Niger Delta (Nigeria). A grant from Boeing transformed a won-derful but under-funded idea into a project with broad and ongoing impact.
The project was initiated by U.S.-based Global Citizen Journey (GCJ), a small grassroots organization purpose-ly fueled by volunteer efforts in order to preserve the “cit-
izen initiative” nature of its work. The United States team was chosen based on expertise and overseas and ser-vice experience. In Niger Delta, the sponsoring organiza-tion, Niger Delta Professionals for Development (NIDPRO-DEV), handpicked a wide variety of individuals in terms of gender, ethnic, religious and professional backgrounds. Because the concept of voluntary service is novel in Niger Delta, delegates from each team were paired with the hope of inspiring follow-up projects in the future.
Identification of the need for a library arose from the community itself. The schools in the region are so poor-ly funded they often operate without books; those that do exist are substandard. The library project was chosen with the intent to enhance the educational system, attract the attention and support of the government to the area, and
Breaking Down Walls
WEST AND CENTRAL AFRICA
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Left: Children sit outside the Niger Friendship Library enjoying one of more than 1,900 books that the library houses, which includes six full sets of Nigerian primary and secondary curricu-lum textbooks.
Right: A boy appears deep in thought as he reads a book with his classmate inside the library.
lEFT: PAMElA DORE PHOTO, RiGHT: kENDRA E. THORNBURy PHOTO
increase the educational level of the local population, result-ing in increased community identity, pride and prosperity.
The September 2005 foundation-laying ceremony was attended by many dignitaries, including represen-tatives of the Delta State Government, who had never before visited such a remote location. The ceremony also brought together high-ranking individuals of the Ijaw and Itsekiri tribes, who, just a few years earlier, had been engaged in bloody conflict.
Nigerian national media covered this event extensive-ly, describing it as reflective of both a new peaceful rela-tionship between the tribes and a courageous and wel-come intervention by U.S. nonprofit organizations. The country’s national daily newspaper, Vanguard, covered the project in a story headlined, “Americans Break Wall of Jericho between Ijaw, Itsekiri.”
Construction on the library was completed three months later. The one-story, fully landscaped facility con-sists of a large reading room, librarian office, media room, reception area and restroom facilities. More than 1,900 books, most provided by the U.S. delegation, line the custom-made bookcases. Six full sets of Nigerian primary and secondary curriculum textbooks are available as well as computers and audio/visual equipment. Solar power panels will be added in the next phase of the project. Out-side, a tall pole, bearing the word “peace” in a dozen lan-guages presents a hope for the future.
According to Chamsou Andjorin, Boeing Global Cor-porate Citizenship representative for West and Central Africa, Boeing’s intent in supporting the library project was to help bring people together who never would have the inclination otherwise. “We hope the library will help create an environment for the youth of these conflicting communities to share knowledge and build trust among each other,” he said.
The U.S. Consul General to Nigeria, Brian Browne, also made a recent visit to the library and spoke about the importance of the program.
“When people are busy building or creating something, they have no time to destroy or tear down something else.
WEST AND CENTRAL AFRICA
One cannot be a builder and a destroyer at the same time. The two no more go together than peace can be war or darkness can be light,” Browne said.
“Public libraries represent an important theme from American history: access to education and knowledge for everyone . . . for men, for women, for children, for our elderly, for immigrants and for visitors and guests,” he continued. “They represent our common desire to grow and develop as human beings and to help develop the communities and societies in which we live.”
“One cannot be a builder and a destroyer at the same time. The two no more go together
than peace can be war or darkness can be light.”
—Brian Browne, U.S. Consul General to Nigeria
ASIA PACIFIC
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Clearing the PathEducation is not a goal, but a journey. But if the guide-
posts are missing, the trip can be an arduous one. A bright student, Tammie dreamed about attending univer-sity, the first in her family with such plans. However, the promise afforded by higher education was overshadowed by confusion about the process and fear about how she was going to pay for it. For lack of direction, her dream was about to derail.
Steering Tammie back on track was a job custom-made for The Smith Family and its Learning for Life program. This Australian social enterprise organization helps disad-vantaged families better their futures through education. It is an ambitious undertaking, and one which Boeing Aus-tralia has supported for several years.
According to the organization, more than 700,000 Aus-tralian children are growing up in jobless families. The cor-responding financial impact affects these families’ ability to support their children’s educational needs. With limited access to educational opportunities, these youths face a potential lifetime of disadvantage.
The Smith Family’s Learning for Life program gives disadvantaged children the opportunity to reach their potential through a two-part program of financial assis-tance and mentoring.
Financial aid can take the form of university scholar-ships or money for uniforms, textbooks, supplies. By elim-inating financial concerns, The Smith Family aims to culti-vate positive attitudes toward education.
Mentoring draws out the best in students, helping them overcome home-life obstacles. Workers with backgrounds in education, social work or psychology team with students and their families to maximize the value of their education.
One such beneficiary is young Queenslander Kati-na Clark, one of the 40,000 students who have received
support from Learning for Life over the years. Katina and her three brothers completed high school thanks to their involvement in the program. Dreaming of a career in for-eign affairs in Asia, Katina has continued her studies and is now in her second year at Queensland University of Technology. Scholarship money was applied to the pur-chase of a computer, books and the cost of transporta-tion to and from the university.
According to The Smith Family’s chief operating offi-cer, Paul Henderson, Boeing’s support is crucial to the lives of a number of children relying on the Learning for Life program.
“Boeing’s investment, now in its second year, ensures that more than 200 financially disadvantaged Austra-lian students have access to a Learning for Life worker who coordinates a range of education programs, such as homework clubs, computer clubs and peer reading sup-port,” said Henderson.
“Education is one of the most important things we can give our children,” said Margaret Hobbs, business man-ager and Global Corporate Citizenship representative for Boeing Australia. “The Smith Family does an exceptional job of encouraging and supporting these kids both finan-cially and emotionally, helping them to make the most of their education.”
In Tammie’s case, The Smith Family helped clear the path. A Learning for Life scholarship provided financial relief for her family, enabling her to attend Newcastle Uni-versity, where she graduated with honors. Today she works as a research coordinator at the Immunology Department of John Hunter Hospital in Newcastle. As much as she cherishes the scholarship, she extols the mentoring aspect of the program with providing the contacts and work expe-rience she needed to get ahead in this competitive field.
Knowing how important mentoring was for her, Tammie is now a mentor herself, working with a young student who is studying science in school.
“I wouldn’t be where I am now if it weren’t for Learn-ing for Life,” Tammie said. “I’m really pleased to have the opportunity to give something back.”
Of the 40,000 students who have received support from The Smith Family’s Learning for Life program over the years, Katina Clark (pictured) and her three brothers completed high school thanks to their involvement in the program.
PHOTO cOURTESy OF THE SMiTH FAMily
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A Caring PresenceThe excitement was palpable as the curtain rose on Bell
Shakespeare Theatre Company’s production of Romeo and Juliet at the Sydney Opera House. Hair and makeup—per-fect; wardrobe—impeccable. Row 14 never looked better.
It was the first-ever Shakespearean play for the young men and women, another horizon broadened through YWCA Big Brothers Big Sisters, a community partner of Boeing Australia. Boeing made this special night possi-ble for the group, thanks to its existing relationship with the theater company.
According to Margaret Hobbs, business manager and Global Citizenship representative for this office, Boeing Australia supports Bell Shakespeare through business con-
tributions, and Big Brothers Big Sisters with philanthropic dollars. Bell was founded with the vision of bringing Shake-speare to disadvantaged and geographically remote sec-tors of the Australian community. “The business supports Bell in part because the troupe performs in some of the far-flung places where Boeing staff work,” noted Hobbs. “It was great to be able to bring the two together.”
YWCA Big Brothers Big Sisters New South Wales and Brisbane provide mentoring, support and guidance to chil-dren who are experiencing difficulties at home and who lack positive role models. According to the agency, children are particularly vulnerable to familial stress caused by separa-tion and divorce, unemployment, drugs, alcohol, mental ill-
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ness and domestic violence. Fully trained and screened vol-unteers are matched with a child. They spend time togeth-er in both everyday and special activities, such as the Romeo and Juliet outing. Time spent with a caring adult increases the child’s self-esteem while building trust and confidence. This has a positive effect on the child’s other relationships, increasing his or her potential at home, in school and in the community. In fact, research shows that children with a Big Brother or Big Sister are 46 percent less likely to begin using illegal drugs and 27 percent less likely to begin using alcohol.
In the Sydney program, children are predominantly from single-parent, welfare-dependent families. Many lack pos-itive role models and are unable to solve day-to-day prob-lems. The one-to-one Big Brothers Big Sisters model fills an important need, which is why Boeing Australia has sup-ported the organization for several years.
Big Sister Rebecca Glenn, a journalist for ABC Radio, notes that the benefits are mutual. “I’ve also had strong empathy with kids facing challenges in life and got involved because I wanted to do something positive in the community. What I hadn’t expected was to get as much, if not more, out of the program as my ‘little sis,’ Paloma. It’s been immensely rewarding; she is a part of my life now,” Glenn said.
Financial support from Boeing has enabled the Syd-ney operation to expand its program to include such activ-ities as a Circus Skills workshop—where participants learn juggling, rope climbing, plate-spinning, trapeze work, the hoola hoop and how to walk on stilts—as well as a camp for Big/Little matches.
With Boeing’s support, the Brisbane YWCA has formed a small group mentoring program in the Big Brothers Big Sisters vein, but with one adult for every three youths,
Big Brother David (left) enjoys spending time with his “Little” Richard. Since its incorporation in Australia 30 years ago, Big Brothers Big Sisters has been a steady, caring presence for more than 3,000 children.
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predominantly girls from refugee and economically and socially disadvantaged families.
”Boeing’s support has enabled us not only to maintain our Sydney program, but also to expand our program into Brisbane where we are able to make a difference in the lives of refugee girls who have a myriad of issues that often go overlooked, such as displacement and cultural difficul-ties. We focus on increasing communication skills, decision making, respect for self and others, personal hygiene and self-esteem,” said Rebecca Adams, Big Brothers Big Sis-ters team coordinator.
Boeing Australia’s Hobbs says the YWCA Big Brothers Big Sisters program is just one example of Boeing’s com-mitment to good corporate citizenship. “Big Brothers Big Sisters makes a profound and positive change in the way these young people feel about themselves and how they view the world. The organization provides positive role models and opportunities that their current support sys-tem may not have,” she said.
While data supports the program’s positive impact, the most convincing endorsement comes from the par-ticipants themselves.
“She’s my closest friend, someone I can really, really rely on,” said Little Sister Kalika.
Financial support from Boeing has enabled the Sydney operation to expand its program to include a circus skills workshop—where participants learn juggling, rope climbing, plate-spinning, trapeze work, the hoola hoop and how to walk on stilts. Pictured (on stilts) are Nicole Sadegi (Little Sister) and Anna Papoutsakis (Big Sister).
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Sitting alone in a corner of the classroom, Li Hao felt it hum with the activity of learning. Education brings oppor-tunity, his grandfather had told him, encouraging him to try his hardest. Day by day, however, the nine-year old slipped further and further behind his sighted classmates.
In China’s far-western Shaanxi Province, visually impaired children like Li Hao and his older brother, Li Fan,
Li Hao now enjoys school, thanks to Golden Key, one of China’s first nonprofit organizations, dedicated to the educational needs of China’s visually impaired children.
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Seeing with the Heartface a double disadvantage. The vast territory, remote location and rugged terrain discourage creation of schools for the visually impaired. Instead, such students typically receive their education in general education classrooms headed by teachers who have little or no training in how to adapt their instruction to the special needs of their stu-dents. Frequently, frustration sent Hao home in tears.
The brothers’ situation changed dramatically in 2004 with an initiative launched by The Golden Key Research Center of Education for the Visually Impaired. One of Chi-na’s first nonprofit organizations, Golden Key is dedicated to the educational needs of China’s visually impaired chil-dren. So successful are the educational theory and prac-tices pioneered by Golden Key that the organization’s founder, Xu Bailun, was singled out for special honors by the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
Xu Bailun, an architect who lost his sight in middle age, has become a leading advocate for the concept of integrated education, which places children with disabil-ities and those without in the same classroom. “The key is showing teachers how to work effectively with spe-cial needs students,” he said. To date, this approach has helped more than 3,500 students ages 7-15 with their education. Many go on to learn vocational skills at cen-ters supported by Golden Key.
In 2003, a grant from Boeing China enabled Golden Key to break another barrier—the launch of its program in Shaanxi. The donations were part of Boeing’s long tradition of community investment, notes David Wang, president, Boeing China.
“It is part of our corporate heritage to give back to the people and communities that have given so much to Boe-ing,” he said. “Boeing and China have a 34-year history of
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working together, during which time we have built a long-term, mutually beneficial partnership. Boeing is proud of this relationship and thanks the Chinese people for their trust and support,” Wang added.
With a successful model already in place, the Shaanxi Project was soon up and running. More than 160 person-nel, including teachers, oculists and administrators, were trained. Inclusion programs were introduced in schools. By 2005, with additional funding from Boeing, more than 120 visually impaired students had enrolled in schools that were now equipped to serve them.
To the Li brothers, it was like the first day of school again, but this time in an environment that can breed success.
“Boeing’s grant addresses not only academics, but also humanitarian needs as well. Enabling blind children
to attend village schools with their sighted friends is a great gift,” said Bailun Xu. “The boys replaced their feel-ings of humiliation with hope. They have their own expec-tations for the future. Li Hao, who had surgery to improve his eyesight, wants to be a doctor to cure people with eye diseases. And Li Fan wants to be a social worker for the Golden Key Project,” he said.
Li Hao (left) and his brother Li Fan were among the first to enjoy the benefits of the new Golden Key program in Shaanxi. Now more than 120 visually impaired students like the brothers have enrolled in schools that is now equipped to serve them.
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Good for BusinessIn what could have been a page right out of a business
school textbook, Guangyao Xia learned that doing good is good for business. His business plan for his environ-mentally sound waste-management company proved to be a money maker, besting the competition and providing exciting growth opportunities. Not bad for a 17-year-old.
Xia was, in fact, a ground breaker. He was among the first class of students at Bejing Chenjinglun High School to participate in a “Student Company” program that Junior Achievement China (JA China) introduced at the school during the 2005-2006 school year. The hands-on program engaged local businesses to introduce students to the basics of commerce, invited students to develop a busi-ness plan for a hypothetical company, and enabled them to turn the plan into an actual business.
The waste-management business developed by Xia and his team was structured to be “practical, profitable and do good for the public.” The plan impressed JA China leaders and the team received seed money from Boeing China to start their business. The team hired student staff, purchased equipment such as recycling bins, and con-tacted recycling companies.
“Though we’re still in the preparation stage, I’ve already learned a lot, such as about research, effective communi-cations and market development,” Xia said. “This program is preparing us for the business world, which is important because China will always need capable businessmen.”
Boeing has invested philanthropically in the JA China program for high school students like Guangyao Xia. The organizations’ common goal is to promote the entrepre-neurial spirit among China’s youth and foster understand-ing of the role of business in society. This includes not only how to develop a viable business plan, but also how to organize and operate an actual business enterprise that adheres to the highest ethical standards.
As in the real world, students develop business strate-gies, sell stock, conduct stockholders’ meetings, elect offi-cers, produce and market real products or services, main-tain records and liquidate the business. Along the way, they learn how leadership, interpersonal skills, effective man-agement and employee teamwork contribute to the suc-cess of a business.
Because JA China relies on volunteers to bring programs to schools, Boeing’s contribution was especially important. The funding was used to train more than 60 business vol-unteers and teachers in how to develop and deliver courses in business plan creation, organizational effectiveness, busi-ness management, finance, and business ethics. In a two-year period alone, these volunteers were able to bring the “company” program to nearly 1,000 high school students.
“The company wouldn’t have been so successful without the support from Boeing China. Its sponsorship is appre-ciated by us today, and even more so tomorrow by stu-dents who are trained and have gained lifelong skills for their career and life,” said Irene Bao, program director, JA China.
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George Liu (left), Communications director, Boeing China, gives advice to two of the students from Chenjinglun High School who participated in a JA China-organized Job Shadow Day at the Boeing China offices in Beijing.
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David Wang, president of Boeing China, observes dual benefits derived from the JA program. While the group’s stated purpose is to educate and inspire young people to value business and economics to improve the quality of their lives, there is potential for a positive residual impact on the country’s economy.
“The continuous growth of small and medium enterpris-es over the course of the next 20 years is what will ulti-mately dictate China’s future,” Wang said. “This growth will require a workforce equipped with the capacity to go beyond the fundamental skills taught in China’s current educational system. JA China’s innovative programs sup-plement a school’s existing curriculum. In addition, the organization is perfectly positioned to have an influence on current reforms in education through strategic relationships with key schools,” he said.
Although success in business can be measured in many terms—sales, profits, rankings, to name a few—the measure of a JA participant’s success is something quite different. In the words of secondary school student, Shen Yingyi:
“I told my mother that I’m not starting up the student company for money. In fact, money couldn’t buy any of the cherished experiences I have had doing this.”
Ken Yata (far right), an executive at Boeing China in Beijing, hosted student company representatives from Chenjinglun High School at Boeing’s offices: (left to right) are Jiao Yingying, Communications director, Peng Wei, Ethics director, and Yang Tianyu, Finance director.
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The arrival of Room to Read’s library program marked a new chapter in village history. School children, accustomed to the straightforward format of their textbooks, were capti-vated by the spellbinding stories and colorful illustrations in the books delivered to their two-room school.
Parents marveled at their children’s eagerness to read to the family each evening. Teachers welcomed the arrival of the literary liaison who made books come alive with dra-matic readings, live performances and artistic interpreta-tions. The community began to visit the library to read the latest news and take out books for themselves. So excit-ing was the response to the new school library that the community rallied to provide new desks for classrooms and an honorarium for the part-time library teacher.
Such is the power of books, an understanding that has been a core value of Room to Read, an international liter-ary organization that partners with communities in devel-oping countries to establish schools, libraries and other
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educational infrastructure. Its early intervention strategies empower children to access educational opportunities that will ultimately improve socio-economic conditions for themselves and their families, communities and country. A challenge grant model facilitates community co-invest-ment, ensuring communities feel a sense of ownership and commitment for long-term sustainability.
A grant from Boeing will enable Room to Read to expand its library programs to 25 in schools in the state of Hima-chi Pradesh, where Boeing has a presence. The impact on 2,000 children studying in these schools and their 100 teach-
A group of girls (pictured) experience the joy of reading thanks to Room to Read, an international literary organization that partners with communities in developing countries to establish schools, libraries and other educational infrastructure.
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The arrival of Room to Read’s library program marked a new chapter in village history. Pictured here is a young girl captivated by the spellbinding stories and colorful illustrations in the books delivered to her two-room school.
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ers will be significant. School libraries stocked with books in local languages and English are being created and equipped with furniture, educational games and puzzles, maps, charts and posters to create a welcoming, child-friendly environ-ment that encourages a love of reading.
“Books are a powerful medium that open up the out-side world to these children,” said Anil Shrikhande, pres-ident, Boeing India. “Boeing is proud to bring this life-altering opportunity to rural schools through our partner-ship with Room to Read.”
Literacy is an important issue in India, where, despite economic growth, the country lacks basic services for much of its population. It is estimated that by 2020, more than half of the world’s illiterate population will be in India. Room to Read India works with disadvantaged commu-nities, rural and urban, to improve the educational infra-structure with the goal of universal quality elementary education for all children.
All Room to Read libraries are geared toward school children ages six to 14. Books are donated in phases, with sets of 200 to 225 titles provided about every six-to-eight months. By the end of three years, a school will have received approximately 1,200 books. Genres range from fairy tales to science, arts and crafts to novels. To date, more than 375,000 books have been donated.
Room to Read’s holistic approach focuses on the human as well as the literary factor. Volunteers and teach-ers undergo intensive training to orient themselves to their role in the library, library management and literacy activ-ities. To date, more than 800 teachers have been trained to operate 900 Reading Rooms serving 157,000 children. More than 375,000 books have been donated.
Teacher participants claim that the Room to Read pro-gram has transformed school communities. Children are becoming avid readers and more successful learners. Teachers, energized by the influx of reading material, have adopted more progressive instructional approaches. Book fairs and other cultural events have emerged as communi-ty outgrowths of the library program, contributing to what is hoped to be the next chapter of this literary legacy.
“Boeing’s grant and its commitment to our mission and vision will bring the lifelong gift of education to chil-dren in India,” said Sunisha Ahuja, country director, Room to Read India.
“We thank Boeing India for making a world of difference to our program.”
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Looking at the skillful craftwork, it was hard to believe that such inspiration rose from so bleak a past. The teen artist, Deepa, had been abused and abandoned as a child, and she arrived at Udayan Ghar Shelter Home with deep psychological problems. To help in the recovery process, Deepa was put under the care of a surrogate family—men-tor mothers and sisters who helped ease her fears and adjustment to life off the streets. In time, Deepa improved. Recognizing her artistic talent, administrators enrolled her in a special arts school, where she is beginning to realize her potential as an artist and an individual.
In a virtual chain of helping hands, funding from Boeing India enables The India Sponsor Foundation (ISF) to accelerate social and economic change among the country’s disenfranchised citizens. Acknowledging the complexity of human needs, ISF oversees a multitude of programs that range from foster care to advocacy for dis-abled students. Now in its fifth year, the foundation acts
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as a liaison between nonprofit organizations and corpo-rate stakeholders. ISF nurtures relationships, monitors and evaluates results, and provides ongoing accounting to donors. All projects target the poorest and most mar-ginalized sections of society.
“India ranks high on the United Nations’ Human Devel-opment Index,” said Anil Shrikhande, president, Boeing India. “Our association with the India Sponsor Founda-tion’s exemplary efforts helps address critical challenges faced by disadvantaged children throughout India.”
Boeing, which began its relationship with ISF in 2005, has channeled its sponsorship into four major areas, including the Udayan Ghar Shelter Home, which proved to be the stabilizing force in Deepa’s life. Using a group foster home model, the organization provides a warm, caring environment designed to replicate that of a fami-ly structure. For many orphaned and abandoned children, Udayan Ghar Shelter Home provides their first sense of
For many orphaned and aban-doned children like those pic-tured here, the Udayan Ghar Shelter Home provides their first sense of security and belonging.
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Children from the Udayan Ghar Shelter Home (pictured) appear to be building a village with clay and paint. Using a group foster home model, the organization provides a warm, caring environ-ment designed to replicate that of a family structure.
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security and belonging. Through Boeing’s sponsorship, the family of Udayan Ghar has grown and flourished.
“The ISF-Boeing partnership is exemplary in that it goes beyond advocacy and has brought tangible, direct benefits to hundreds of disadvantaged children,” said Lekha Sriv-astava, an ISF representative. “Further, the Boeing partner-ship has encouraged other companies to emulate it. The success of this partnership is the foundation for ISF and Boeing to undertake many more such initiatives.”
Tending to physical as well as intellectual needs, Jan Madyam, another Boeing-supported, ISF-linked program, advocates for the rights of physically disabled students. Using education and awareness-building campaigns, it aims to change public perception about the abilities of such students while putting in place the systems and struc-tures to foster success. For example, physically impaired instructors provide role models for students and demon-strates that physical limitations need not be disabling.
Education is at the core of Boeing’s community invest-ment with ISF and its partner organizations. From a voca-tional outreach program at Tihar Jail to remedial class-es at a primary school for girls to computer training pro-grams, both traditional and non-traditional delivery sys-tems are employed to reach a broad base of learners. With 40 to 50 million eligible children currently not attend-ing school, the task is enormous. Thanks to organizations like the India Sponsor Foundation, it is not impossible.
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Back in the GameSince 1964, The Japanese Society for Rehabilitation of
Persons with Disabilities (JSRPD) has been a champion of the physically impaired, giving voice to their cause and helping clear hurdles so they can fully engage in society.
JSRPD seeks to fulfill material needs as well as pro-vide spiritual encouragement to their clients. A grant from The Boeing Company seems to have accomplished both. With a grant from Boeing, the organization was able to purchase equipment to support two new programs, one for sports and one for study.
In Japan, people with disabilities are less likely to be part of the workforce, and their full participation in soci-
ety lags far behind that of other developed countries. The programs provided by JSRPD are designed to change that dynamic. When people are better able to communi-cate with others, they can more actively engage in society, which eventually leads to greater prosperity for all people, disabled or otherwise.
Simply put, the sports program is meant to put people with wheelchairs back in the game. JSRPD believes that sports are beneficial for physical and mental health. Since it is impossible to participate in vigorous sports on regu-lar wheelchairs, which lack the necessary safety features, JSRPD sought out wheelchairs specially designed for this
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use. These chairs enable people to play basketball, soc-cer and tennis safely and in compliance with international rules. The availability of the special wheelchairs has even encouraged some of the disabled athletes to think about joining an Olympic team in the future.
The enthusiasm about being able to play these team sports is high among the organization’s clients. One play-er didn’t even mind the fact that he broke his glasses dur-ing a game, his excitement about playing basketball with his teammates was so great.
The new study program for the visually impaired employs special equipment to help clients read books, access infor-mation on the Internet using Braille, read newspapers and perform other activities. The availability of this high-quali-
Since 1964, The Japanese Society for Rehabilitation of Persons with Disabilities (JSRPD) has been a champion of the physically impaired. Pictured here are clients enjoying a game of basketball thanks to specially designed wheelchairs.
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ty support equipment, combined with training, has helped participants significantly expand their horizons.
“We can now access much more information than before,” thanks to the new equipment enabling use of the Internet,” said a user.
“We appreciate what Boeing brought to our organiza-tion, the wheelchairs for sports and special equipment for reading books,” said Hiroyuki Murakami, JSRPD accounting manager. “It has enabled persons with dis-abilities to play sports that require a minimum number of people, such as basketball. Our athletes used to have problems finding enough players to form a team. But now they enjoy practicing in formation as well as play-ing basketball games.
“Additional Boeing funding enabled us to produce compact discs for people with visual disabilities and to purchase a Braille system,” Murakami continued. “The CD program encourages children to read picture books, and the Braille displays are helpful for blind and deaf per-sons studying computer literacy. We appreciate Boeing’s thoughtful support of our organization.”
JSRPD’s new study program for the visually impaired employs special equipment such as the one pictured to help clients read books, access information on the Internet, read newspapers and perform other activities.
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Opening DoorsDespite a long history of opening doors for the mentally
disabled, the Nozominosono Support Foundation found it impossible to push past 180 pounds of cold metal.
While liberating for patients, electric wheelchairs proved to be formidable obstacles for staff who had to transport chairs and their occupants to and from appointments at area medical facilities. The combined weight of chair and patient often tops 300 pounds. Get-ting patients in and out of the transport car was daunting for both workers and their charges.
Founded in 1971, the Nozominosono Support Foun-dation’s activities revolve around its philosophy of “increasing motivation of persons with mental disabili-ties to live fuller lives.”
To that end, the foundation offers medical support, short stay service and daycare for persons who reside with their families.
A dedicated facility serves 400 residents who learn how to live independently as well as together with others and often make small salaries creating and selling craft objects, cultivating agricultural products, taking care of animals at the community farm, and other activities.
In addition to personal welfare services, the founda-tion conducts research to promote understanding of key mental health issues in an effort to promote greater under-standing and acceptance of the mentally impaired.
In 2004, the foundation appealed for Boeing’s support to increase its accessibility by people confined to wheel-
Boeing Japan helped the Nozominosono Support Foundation purchase this vehicle equipped with a wheelchair loader. Lifting the combined weight of patient and chair into a car every day was impossible for one staff member to handle alone.
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chairs. A special vehicle with a wheelchair loader would greatly simplify the process of taking patients to area hos-pitals, but the cost was prohibitive. With the cash grant from Boeing, the foundation was able to purchase a spe-cially equipped vehicle.
“Transporting people who use electric wheelchairs imposed an increasingly heavy mental and physical burden,” said Kenichi Kubo, general affairs supervisor for the Nozom-inosono Support Foundation and the chief of this project.
“Lifting the combined weight of patient and chair into a car every day was impossible for one staff member to handle alone. The new vehicle has taken accessibility to a new level,” Kubo said.
“Sometimes we have to take patients on an intravenous drip to visit the neurosurgeons. In that case, we have to take great care not to remove the needle. The car with wheelchair loader helps on these occasions as well,” Kubo continued. “The vehicle provides both the person with disabilities and the staff members with mental and physical support.”
Boeing’s contribution has provided Nozominosono Support Foundation clients better access to hospitals, while alleviating the stress associated with transporta-tion issues. The special wheelchair-accessible vehicle has become essential to their daily lives.
Nozominosono residents, like the ones shown here, often make small salaries creating and selling craft objects, cultivating agri-cultural products, taking care of animals at the community farm and other activities.
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“The new vehicle has taken accessibility to a new level.”
—kenichi kubo, general affairs supervisor, Nozominosono Support Foundation
SOUTH KOREA
In their pursuit of future dreams, Jang-Ho Park and Hyun-Wook Kim dug deep into the past.
The two Seoul Science High School students are mem-bers of an aeronautics program made possible through a grant from Boeing.
While fellow students explored futuristic designs for unmanned aerial vehicles and micro air vehicles, the pair set out to recreate an ancient aircraft, the Beeguh, or Fly-ing Wagon. According to Beeguh lore, the flying wagon flew 12 km from Jinju Castle with several people on board during a significant 16th century battle.
Books and the Internet provided some clues as to the craft’s design. A visit to Jinju castle provided additional perspective. The boys set to work, manufacturing a minia-ture of the Beeguh with bamboo, leather and other mate-rials. Gunpowder provided propulsion for a launch and short, but triumphant, flight.
Jang-Ho Park and Hyun-Wook Kim are among an elite corps of highly motivated students in the Aerospace Mem-bership Program at Seoul Science High School. Admit-
The Sky’s the Limittance to school is, in itself, an achievement. Students are required to be in the top one percent of all students nation-ally. Seventy percent graduate in their second year and go on to university. The science curriculum is rigorous, and the teachers and facilities are among the best in the coun-try. Still, to remain internationally competitive, the students must be constantly challenged.
With help from Boeing, the school established an Aero-space Education Lab to offer advanced studies in sci-ence and engineering within a secondary school environ-ment. The lab was equipped with state-of-the-art com-puters, audio-visual equipment and models of Boeing air-craft. There, students pursue intensive study in aeronautical engineering and science in preparation for university admit-tance. The program has received accolades for its excel-lence and has been the focus of several magazine articles.
In addition to the aerospace program, the Boeing Aerospace Education Lab is used for conducting exper-iments, teacher training, seminars and a “Student Inven-tion Class” summer program.
“It’s rewarding to see the enthusiasm and drive of these students, and their joy in doing something they love,” said Keetaek Hong, director of the Aerospace Student Program.
Student Tae Myung Huh articulated his and his class-mates’ vision. “I have had a big dream to be the best engi-neer in the aerospace field. I followed my dream by choosing Seoul Science High School. As I prepare to study mechan-ical engineering at the university level, I reflect on the role that the Aerospace Lab has had. I am grateful to The Boeing Company for providing this opportunity and strengthening my desire to be the best engineer in the aerospace field.”
Left: After first-year student Wook Sun (pictured) read the book Cosmos by American writer Carl Sagan, Wook became a mem-ber of the Aerospace Membership Program at Seoul Science High School. His dream is to become a space rocket designer.
Right: The sky is the limit for students at Seoul Science High School. The science curriculum is rigorous, and the teachers and facilities are among the best in the country.
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On Their Own Two Feet
When a little girl named Phuong Thuy was examined earlier in 2005 at Bach Mai Rehabilitation Centre in Hanoi, Vietnam, she had one request—that her left leg be ampu-tated. The congenitally short leg made Thuy self-con-scious about playing outside with her siblings and friends and was likely to lead to curvature of her spine. But when center staffers asked her to try an orthoprosthesis instead of amputation, she agreed. The option of an assistive device may not have been possible without a Vietnam Veterans of America Foundation (VVAF) program, partially funded by Boeing Southeast Asia.
The VVAF has operated the Physical Rehabilitation Program for Persons with Disabilities in Vietnam since 1994. In late 2004, the VVAF asked Boeing for a grant to support the purchase of materials and equipment to produce assistive devices at two hospitals in Hanoi and at Agape Hospital in rural Nam Dinh province. In 2005, Boeing expanded its support to include VVAF’s Cambo-dia program through a grant for rehabilitation projects in Phnom Penh and two provinces.
Established in 1980 by a group of American veterans of the U.S.-Vietnam War, the VVAF carries out humanitarian
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At the Nam Dinh workshop in Vietnam, a mother sits with her son, a patient undergoing physiotherapy after sur-gery. He was fitted with an ankle-foot orthosis, through a program, partially funded by Boeing.
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as well as rehabilitation programs and assistance in land-mine removal around the world. In Vietnam and Cambo-dia, unexploded ordnance and landmines, along with birth defects and disease, have left an estimated 700,000 citi-zens needing assistive devices and physical therapy. The VVAF is one organization that’s stepped up to fill that need. The organization, which declares it has “transformed the American experience of the Vietnam War into a mission of compassion and justice,” was instrumental in normalizing relations between the two nations, leading to the lifting of the U.S. trade embargo with Vietnam in 1994.
Since 2004, Boeing has been an integral supporter of VVAF’s expanding work in Vietnam and Cambodia to pro-vide rehabilitation services for people with disabilities. Boe-ing first gave its support for a project in Vietnam as VVAF and Vietnam’s Ministry of Health were collaborating to address the unmet needs of people living in the rural areas who were suffering from diseases or physical disabilities.
This 2004 support grant of $50,000 came at a pivotal time as VVAF was making plans to establish orthotic works in five provinces in northern Vietnam. Later that year, Boe-ing expanded its support to include VVAF’s Cambodia pro-gram through a grant for rehabilitation projects in Phnom Penh and two provinces. In 2005, Boeing made another grant toward VVAF’s continuing rehabilitation work in Viet-nam, with another planned this year.
“We are very pleased that Boeing has entrusted VVAF with funds for our rehabilitation programs in Vietnam and Cambodia,” said Tom Leckinger, VVAF country repre-sentative in Vietnam. “We greatly appreciate The Boeing Company’s contribution. It represents a significant com-mitment to VVAF’s rehabilitation services and to orthotic care in our outreach programs.”
“Good corporate citizenship is integral to who we are as a company and important for us as a global business entity,” said Paul Walters, regional vice president, Boeing Southeast Asia.
“We wanted to contribute to the Vietnamese and Cam-bodian communities in a meaningful way, and we felt that working with the Vietnam Veterans of America Founda-tion would ensure our contributions would be put to good use. Boeing is very proud to be associated with VVAF in its humanitarian programs with persons with disabilities in Vietnam and Cambodia. We look forward to a long and meaningful relationship with VVAF to improve the quality of life of persons with disabilities,” said Walters.
From January 2004 to June 2006, 3,719 patients in VVAF’s programs throughout Vietnam and Cambodia have benefited from Boeing’s philanthropic generosity. The
6,055 assistive devices procured from the Boeing grant since 2004 include 5,060 orthotic devices, 64 prosthesis, 639 wheelchairs and 292 sets of crutches.
In Phuong Thuy’s case, her assistive device changed a quiet girl who dreamed of having her leg cut off into one who could run and play. She’s one of 3,719 patients who have been provided with assistive devices since the Boeing grant.
A child, happy to be on her own two feet after receiving bilat-eral ankle-foot orthoses, is one of 70,000 people in Vietnam and nearby Cambodia to receive help from the Vietnam Veterans Foundation of America, which carries out humanitarian and reha-bilitation programs and assistance in landmine removal around the world.
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A bright orange Gerbera daisy perches on the edge of her easel as 12-year-old Sherissa Moneyas furrows her brow in concentration. She starts with an outline of the flower—in orange of course—then the stem in a dark green. As she finishes the drawing she looks up expectant-ly, waiting for her teacher’s reaction to her masterpiece.
While Sherissa cannot hear what the teacher is say-ing, the interpreter’s hands convey the message, “Well done!” Both relieved and delighted, Sherissa’s eyes brighten in response.
A student at the Manitoba School for the Deaf (MSD) since she was six years old, Winnipeg-born Sherissa has attended Sign for Art classes at the Winnipeg Art Gal-lery (WAG) once a week during the spring months for the last three years. Children from the Manitoba School for the Deaf, ranging from kindergarten to high school age, work under the guidance of professional artist/instruc-tors using a variety of art materials, from clay to paint and everything in between.
More than just a fun thing to do, the program nur-tures creative self-expression, hones problem-solving skills and builds self-esteem in the participants, bridg-ing the sometimes vast divide between the hearing and non-hearing worlds.
Just like the professional artists whose work they see in the galleries, the students participate in an exhibition of their work and a reception, hosted by The Boeing Compa-ny at its plant in Winnipeg every year. “Just being able to see the kids’ reactions when they attend the Art Show is very gratifying,” noted Larry Leiter, Business Development director at Boeing Winnipeg.
Boeing’s support extends beyond the use of the space, however. In fact, the company, a supporter of WAG for nearly 30 years, was instrumental in forging the
Making the graderelationship between the Art Gallery and the school more than eight years ago.
“Boeing’s support has been consistently generous and has allowed The Winnipeg Art Gallery to develop this excit-ing and valuable program with partners that we may not have connected with otherwise,” said Michael Boss, head of WAG’s Studio Programs, of which Sign for Art is a part.
“As one who has been involved from the outset, I must say it has truly been an eye-opening experience,” Boss continued. “We have seen the partnership grow from ten-tative beginnings to a highly valued and eagerly anticipated program that we all look forward to each year.”
Nine-year-old Ryan Baldes is one such child. A resident of Stoney Mountain, Manitoba, Ryan started at the School for the Deaf in Grade 2 and has been part of the Sign for Art program for two years. Unlike Sherissa, Ryan’s favorite medium is clay. “I’ve learned a lot,” he said. “I’ve learned to make a lot of different sculptures.”
“The program is very important to the children from the School for the Deaf,” confirmed Terry Trupp, Communica-tions specialist and Global Corporate Citizenship repre-sentative at the Winnipeg site. “It allows them to express themselves with different media not accessible to them in their regular school curriculum.
“While support often includes a cash grant, what’s more important here is the strong partnership we’ve been able to nurture between the MSD and the Winnipeg Art Gallery,” Trupp continued.
“Our commitment to improving the communities where our employees live and work certainly comes through in this partnership,” said Leiter. Of note, Boeing Winnipeg employs more than 20 deaf and hard of hearing employees and has supported the deaf culture in other ways in the past.
According to all concerned, the Sign for Art Program has had a very positive effect on the students from MSD. “We have witnessed the pride the students feel when their work is displayed in public and the program’s impact on so many other areas of their lives. Sign for Art is a shining example of how well art education works,” Boss said.
And who knows? There may be a couple of original Bal-des or Moneyas pieces displayed in the Winnipeg Art Gal-lery sooner than anyone thinks.
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Two students at the Manitoba School for the Deaf, Sherissa Moneyas (right) and Ryan Baldes, attend Sign for Art classes at the Winnipeg Art Gallery (WAG), which allows them to express themselves with different media not accessible to them in their regular school curriculum.
BRiAN GOUlD PHOTOGRAPHy iNc.
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Although she did not know it at the time, Jannina took the first step toward a college degree when she set foot in the Saint Joseph Ballet studio as a shy 11 year old. Enticed by a love of dance, ultimately she found family, opportunity and herself.
As a freshman at Concordia University, she looks back on that day, wondering how things would have been dif-ferent had her father not persuaded her to audition. “I def-initely wouldn’t have enrolled at Concordia University. I don’t know that I would have gone to any college or even thought about it,” Jannina said.
Located in Santa Ana, Calif., Saint Joseph Ballet har-nesses the discipline of dance to empower low-income youth to build self-esteem, self-confidence and a sense of accomplishment. Students ages 9-19 train in mod-ern dance and ballet, growing artistically and emotionally through progressively challenging programs. In a commu-nity where drug abuse, gang activity, teen pregnancy and delinquency are an ongoing presence, Saint Joseph Ballet is an alternative that has transformed thousands of young lives since its founding in 1983.
“Studies have documented a connection between fine arts programming and academic performance,” said artis-tic director Melanie Ríos Glaser. “Creativity can manifest itself in artistic expression or be summoned for problem-solving in the classroom. The skills gained—self-confi-dence, discipline, creativity and a sense of accomplish-ment—can be carried through life,” Ríos Glaser said.
While dance was the initial draw for Jannina, the orga-nization’s holistic approach of dance training, academic programs and family services is what captivates dancers and their families long-term. Shortly after joining, Jannina found it hard not to think about college.
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“There is an underlying assumption that all Saint Joseph dancers are destined for higher education,” said Ríos Glaser. “We demonstrate our commitment to that focus with tutoring, computer training, campus visits, SAT and college essay workshops, financial aid and applica-tion assistance. A college scholarship award is given to every youth who has been enrolled in Saint Joseph Bal-let since his or her freshmen year and has maintained at least a 2.5 grade point average.”
A leading donor for more than a decade, Boeing sup-ports the organization’s ambitious academic agenda, which this year helped all 18 of the program’s seniors enroll in college, provided additional scholarships for 46 alumni, and tallied more than 2,500 hours of academic tutoring.
“One of the most rewarding outcomes of our involve-ment with Saint Joseph Ballet is its impact on the com-munity,” said Nancy Lurwig, Global Corporate Citizen-ship representative. “In an area where just 33 percent of students go on to college, Saint Joseph’s graduates are breaking barriers and challenging expectations.”
Additionally, Boeing’s contributions to the organiza-tion’s capital campaign helped fund the building of a state-of-the-art facility that includes three studios, an education center, community center and volunteer suite.
“To think that just a few years ago, our academic area was just a cluster of tables in a corner of our old studio; these are very exciting times!” said Ríos Glaser.
Less tangible but just as significant is the culture of family among dancers, staff volunteers and alumni. High expectations are met with an equal measure of support. Older students mentor younger ones. Alumni visit to inspire and encourage others. When Jannina’s grades slipped, her academic counselor helped her regain her A- average. Similarly, when she struggled to advance to a challenging dance level, her instructor urged her on gently, but firmly.
Now, officially an alumnus, Jannina leaves her brother, a dancer, and her mother, an office volunteer, as her touch-stones to Saint Joseph Ballet. “I speak for all when I say I’m very glad to have found this place.”
On Their Toes
Now a freshman at Concordia University, Jannina credits the holis-tic approach of dance training, academic programs and family ser-vices at St. Joseph Ballet for her interest in higher education.
PHOTO cOURTESy OF ST. JOSEPH BAllET
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It’s in the NumbersThe progress demonstrated by the Bellevue School Dis-
trict started with a healthy dose of courage and a long, hard look in the mirror. Already known for its top performing schools, the district nonetheless was committed to building on existing successes and extending its promise to provide every student with a top-of-the-line college prep education.
From a practical perspective, this means preparing stu-dents to compete globally for jobs in expanding fields such as science and engineering. However, when com-pared to their international peers, U.S. students’ mathe-matical knowledge and skill levels steadily decline after the
fourth grade and by high school lag behind other leading industrialized nations. This inadequacy ultimately puts U.S. students at a disadvantage for desirable jobs that require advanced math skills. The lack of domestic mathematical talent ultimately affects the nation’s economy by requiring business to either import talent or export high-paying jobs, an outcome that can be devastating to local communities.
“One of the common characteristics of countries whose students outperform the United States is the existence of a national curriculum and teachers who work together to make it as rich and strong as possible,” said Dr. Michael
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Riley, superintendent. “Because it is well organized and efficient, students can move through it in a more seamless way and reach a higher level of performance.”
In 2003, with an eye toward bringing Bellevue’s curricu-lum in line with the highest international standards, the dis-trict partnered with Dr. William Schmidt, a professor at Mich-igan State University. Dr. Schmidt serves as the national research coordinator and executive director of the Nation-al Center, which oversees U.S. participation in the Trends in International Math and Science Study. An audit by Schmidt and his team revealed that Bellevue’s math program was not aligned with international standards. Findings included a recommendation that the math program be restructured to focus more deeply on fewer concepts in each grade so stu-dents become proficient before moving on to new ones, an approach that mirrors that in countries with the highest per-forming math students.
In June 2003, with funding from Boeing, the district was able to design and implement recommendations made from the audit and create a coherent, comprehensive math curriculum that is aligned to the highest international stan-dards. Boeing’s support allowed the district to introduce needed changes in a compressed time period to ensure that students immediately benefited from the improve-ments. These changes included a fully aligned, connect-ed math curriculum that eliminates repetition and gaps in learning, a more rigorous learning objective that challeng-es students to higher-level learning, and an online curricu-lum Web site that contains all the information and materi-als teachers need to provide daily, high-level learning.
Since the curriculum was introduced in the 2005-2006 school year, there are indicators of positive results. There was a 35 percent increase in the number of fifth grade stu-dents testing into seventh grade math. For the upcoming school year, 64 percent of seniors will be in an Advanced Placement math course and 87 percent of graduating seniors will be at or above the pre-calculus level.
One of these is Piya Banerjee. During her years at Newport High School in Bellevue, Washington, Piya took
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a total of eight Advanced Placement (AP) classes, includ-ing Environmental Science, Calculus and Physics. Now a student at the University of Washington, Piya credits the curriculum at Newport High with her success.
While one might think that academic rigor would cause more students to struggle academically, the opposite is the case in the Bellevue School District. Since it began encouraging all students to take AP/International Bacca-laureate classes, the dropout rate has decreased from 19 percent to just 10 percent.
Leveraging the success of the Bellevue experience, the Seattle School District has launched a similar effort with Boeing’s support and guidance and practical materials from Bellevue, such as lesson plans and student assess-ments, to expedite the necessary changes.
“One of the most significant aspects of the Boeing-Bellevue International Math Standards Partnership,” said Joyce Walters, Boeing Global Corporate Citizenship man-ager, “is the universality of the curriculum and the ease with which it can be replicated in other districts as a result.”
Easton Hazim (left) and Betty Nhan, fourth-grade teacher from Bellevue School District review an assignment together. The school district has a fully aligned, connected math curriculum that eliminates repetition and gaps in learning as well as a more rigorous learning objective that challenges students like Easton to higher-level learning.
cRAiG BURliNGAME, BEllEvUE ScHOOl DiSTRicT PHOTO
Piya Banerjee (pictured) graduated from Newport High School in Bellevue, Wash., having completed a total of eight Advanced Placement classes. Now a student at the University of Washington, Piya credits the curriculum at Newport High with her success.
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Making a New StartDespite William Terrell’s aptitude for tinkering and repair
work and an amiable disposition, drug and alcohol depen-dency got in the way of steady work. He lived day-to-day, sleeping in abandoned buildings and doing whatever was necessary to get by. Life on the streets was tough, but even tougher was the effort to turn things around.
Word on the streets of St. Louis, Mo. was that St. Pat-rick Center offered troubled individuals a way to make a new start. William joined the hundreds who came daily for hot meals and a safe, warm and dry place to rest and/or to receive services such as counseling, benefits assis-tance, job training and housing.
St. Patrick Center is the largest homeless service agency in Missouri, offering 19 programs in mental health, employment training and basic living skills that assist more than 10,000 homeless and at-risk individuals annu-ally. One-fifth of the organization’s clients are U.S. Armed Forces veterans, including William. Both Boeing and its employees, through corporate grants and grants made by the Employees Community Fund of Boeing-St. Louis, have supported the organization and its mission for more than a decade.
For William, his experience with the Center had a rocky beginning and was filled with false starts. Despite employment at the Center’s Shamrock Kitchen, William remained homeless and landed in jail on a trespassing charge. Upon release, William was more determined than ever to change his situation. He entered drug rehab at St. Patrick Center and enrolled in a training program at its McMurphy’s Grill, the first full-service restaurant that trains the mentally ill and homeless on all facets of the food-service business.
William parlayed his kitchen experience at McMur-phy’s into one at nearby Kitchen K as a night dishwash-er and maintenance man. Steadily employed, William applied for and received permanent housing through St. Patrick Center. It was the first time in 24 years that he had a place to call his own.
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William parlayed his kitchen experience at McMurphy’s Grill into a position at another nearby restaurant. McMurphy’s is the nation’s first full-service restaurant that trains the mentally ill and home-less in all facets of the food-service business.
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William Terrell (pictured) has St. Patrick Center to thank for helping him turn his life around. Now with a permanent resi-dence, this is the first time in 24 years that William has a place to call his own.
DAviD MARTiN PHOTO
“I’ve had a taste of what it is to feel good about myself. Once I started feeling good about myself, I couldn’t go back to that old life,” William said. “I’ve been clean and sober for three-and-a-half years. My life today is beautiful.”
Boeing’s partnership with St. Patrick Center dates back to 1990, with funding earmarked specifically for the res-taurant. The impact of that initial grant inspired continued support from both the Employees Community Fund and Boeing corporate giving. As Boeing’s involvement grew, so did St. Patrick Center services, which now include substance abuse and mental health treatment, ongoing recovery support, parent education, GED and basic edu-cation classes, advanced computer training, job-readi-ness and skills training, employment search assistance, crisis intervention, and transitional shelter and perma-nent-housing assistance. A daily lunch program and cli-ent child care also are available.
“Boeing’s involvement with St. Joseph Patrick Center exemplifies the company’s philanthropic investment strat-egy of leveraging multiple resources on the local and cor-porate levels,” said Jim Bafaro, Global Corporate Citizen-
ship representative in St. Louis. “McMurphy’s Grill was embraced emotionally and financially by the Employees Community Fund. Boeing has furthered that commitment with additional funding to the Center.”
“The Boeing support reflects the very spirit of our mis-sion,” said Dan Buck, St. Patrick Center chief executive officer. “It is consistent, holistic and multi-faceted. Boe-ing gives us more than just dollars—they provide corpo-rate leadership, advocacy and volunteers. Boeing builds aircraft but they also help us rebuild lives for those who have been grounded by the weight of poverty and home-lessness. Together, St. Patrick Center and Boeing help these people fly again!”
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Terrence Carter relishes his role as principal number cruncher. As head of Barton Elementary School on the south side of Chicago, Ill., Carter and his staff find strength in numbers with their data-driven approach to boosting student achievement.
A former chief learning officer for a Fortune 500 com-pany, Carter saw how statistical information drove busi-ness decisions and thought it could play a role in the edu-cational arena as well.
His theory proved correct. By monitoring student achieve-ment, analyzing their strengths and weaknesses and target-ing areas for improvement, the school was able to boost stu-dent achievement on norm-referenced tests by 12 percent.
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Carter is one of a new breed of school administra-tors. With successful backgrounds in both business and education—as a third-grade-teacher—he took the step toward becoming a principal through New Leaders for New Schools, a national nonprofit organization that recruits and trains top-quality principals for urban pub-lic schools.
As a core funding partner, Boeing has played an integral role in the success of the New Leaders program in Chica-go by providing financial support in addition to mentoring opportunities with Boeing executives, who provide coach-ing to help tomorrow’s principals develop key strategic leadership skills necessary for success.
The Skill to Lead
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““The key to professional growth and advancement is a quality education, and Boeing is committed to broadening access to such in our inner cities,” said James Bell, Boe-ing chief financial officer, former New Leaders mentor and member of the organization’s national board of directors. That commitment goes beyond simply financial contribu-tions,” Bell said. “Boeing executives have served as cor-porate mentors working directly with school principals on a one-on-one basis.”
Founded in 2000, with partnerships with school districts in New York City, Chicago, Washington, D.C., Memphis, San Francisco, Baltimore and most recently Milwaukee, New Leaders for New Schools is committed to developing a national corps of urban school principals with the overall goal of increasing academic achievement for all students.
Aspiring principals complete a three-year program that includes a year of intensive coursework and hands-on train-ing under a skilled mentor principal, two additional years of coaching and support, and a national alumni network.
The program has received praise from many. In fact, it has been recognized as a model principal training program by the Progressive Policy Institute and as one of the “Top 20 Groups that are Changing the World” by Fast Compa-ny magazine. The program also was selected by the U.S. Department of Education as one of six school leadership programs to be featured in a best practices guide.
Boeing’s support has grown beyond Chicago. In the nation’s capital, a grant from Boeing’s Washington, D.C., Operations is helping New Leaders launch a pilot program that targets each component responsible for student suc-cess: principal, teachers, parents and students. While principals continue to advance through the New Leaders program, Boeing is aiding the professional development of teachers by subsidizing their efforts toward National Board Certification, the highest educational credential a teacher can receive.
Left: A young student at Whittier Elementary School in Chicago, Ill., listens intently during class. Whittier is one of the Chicago Public Schools with a principal trained by New Leaders for New Schools.
Right: Tamara Sterling (left), currently principal of Simeon Career Academy High School in Chicago, Ill., helps a student with her studies at her previous school. Sterling completed a three-year program that included a year of intensive coursework and hands-on training under a skilled mentor principal.
SEM Q PRODUcTiON PHOTOS
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To encourage parents to become greater stakeholders in their children’s education, an advocacy group, Turning the Page, is helping parents work effectively with children at home and teachers and administrators at school. Youth mentoring completes the circle to ensure students are physically and mentally engaged in the learning process.
Boeing’s involvement with New Leaders is just one example of the company’s support of systemic and con-tinuous improvement in school systems, concentrating on teacher effectiveness in literacy, math and science, and on school leadership development.
“The Boeing Company has served as an integral, active and thoughtful partner to our organization,” said April Ervin, executive director of the New Leaders Chica-go program. “The company’s commitment to support ini-tiatives focused on improving the quality of public educa-tion is an exemplary model of corporate philanthropy and community involvement.”
DISASTER RELIEF
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Children enjoy fresh water in the aftermath of the 2004 Southeast Asia tsunami. Boeing corporate and employee/retiree contribu-tions to tsunami-relief efforts in Southeast Asia totaled more than $4.5 million. Employee and retiree contributions accounted for nearly $2 million of that total.
PHOTO cOURTESy OF AMERicAN RED cROSS (DANiEl ciMA)
In Times of NeedDrought, famines, war, earthquakes, hurricanes, tsuna-
mis—just a short list of the natural and manmade disasters that can befall a village, nation or region, creating chaos where there once was order and devastation where there once was plenty. Some disasters are fast onset, causing massive destruction in the blink of an eye. Others emerge slowly and, while less immediate, are most often more deadly as they relentlessly take their toll over many years. In either case, one thing is certain—people need help, they need it fast, and they need it over the long term before true recovery can take place.
Over the years, The Boeing Company has responded to these calls for help, working with world-class disaster relief agencies such as CARE, Mercy Corps and the Red Cross to bring needed assistance to those affected by various disasters around the globe.
Often this assistance is in the form of monetary grants other times Boeing equipment figures prominently as relief agencies provide assistance to remote areas. Often the generosity of Boeing employees and retirees comes into play, resulting in millions of dollars in contributions that are matched by the company.
For example, employee and company contributions to tsunami-relief efforts in Southeast Asia totaled more than $4.5 million. Employee and retiree contributions account-ed for nearly $2 million of that total, excluding the compa-ny match of almost $1.9 million and a corporate contribu-tion of $1 million. In this case, as in many others, Boeing’s focus is not only on short-term relief, but also on long-term rebuilding with the goal of restoring the affected area to normalcy as soon as possible.
“It is hard to find solace in a disaster as enormous and tragic as the 2004 tsunami in Asia. Yet, when you meet
firsthand the survivors who have been directly helped by the outpouring of generosity from Boeing employees and The Boeing Company, the power of ‘a neighbor helping a neighbor’ really comes into sharp focus,” said Dr. Helene Gayle, president and chief executive officer of CARE.
“While Boeing employees might be located thousands of miles from the disaster, they are there beside CARE in spirit as we help our global neighbors rebuild their livelihoods and make life better for their families,” Dr. Gayle added.
Boeing contributed $1 million to Mercy Corps for rebuild-ing in Pakistan after that country’s devastating earthquake. And, in an effort to help ease the pain and suffering caused by the ongoing war in the Darfur region of Sudan, in 2004 Boeing made a grant to CARE to support the organization’s emergency programs there and in nearby Chad, which has been inundated with refugees fleeing the conflict. Boeing dollars went toward much-needed food, essential supplies as well as water and sanitation and health initiatives.
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International Disaster ReliefSince 2000, Boeing has made 2� grants to eight organi-zations for international disaster relief totaling more than $2.5 million in the following countries/regions (*company match totaling $2 million):
• Australia • Mozambique *
• Czechoslovakia • Niger
• democratic Republic of Congo *
• Pakistan
• El Salvador * • Philippines
• Ethiopia • Southeast Asia (tsunami) *
• Haiti • Spain
• India * • Sudan
• Iran • Turkey
• Japan • Uganda
• Korea • Venezuela
• Mali • Vietnam *
• Mongolia
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tions consisted of a $1 million corporate contribution, near-ly $3.9 million contributed by Boeing employees and retir-ees, and more than $3.8 million from a company matching contribution. In addition, individual Employees Community Fund boards and committees as well as sites from across the company made nearly $650,000 in grants from their own funds to local American Red Cross and other disaster relief agencies to assist in the care of the displaced.
“We could not have fulfilled our humanitarian mission along the Gulf Coast and across the country if it were not for the tremendous support of partners such as The Boeing Company and Boeing employees,” said Kathleen Loehr, interim senior vice president of development for the Amer-ican Red Cross. “Wherever disaster hits—domestically or internationally—Boeing is there to support the work of the American Red Cross. We are sincerely grateful.”
While disasters will continue to happen, one other thing will remain a constant as well—the desire to reach out and help, the desire to make things better.
DISASTER RELIEF
Community members take a fishing boat back to the sea post tsunami. In the case of the tsunami, as in many others, Boeing’s focus is not only on short-term relief but also on long-term rebuilding with the goal of restoring the affected area to nor-malcy as soon as possible.
PHOTO cOURTESy OF MERcy cORPS (cATE GillON)
Other recent examples include a grant to help build an irrigation system to fight the effects of severe drought in Ethiopia, and another to help people suffering from a devas-tating swarm of locusts in Mali. Boeing provided support to those affected by the food crisis in Niger in 2005, and con-tributed toward the development of emergency prepared-ness programs in the Ferghana Valley of Central Asia, a patchwork of borders of former Soviet republics that is vul-nerable to landslides, avalanches and earthquakes. Relief for flood devastation in Haiti after the impact of Hurricane Jeanne in 2004 was the purpose of yet another grant.
“We are incredibly grateful for our continued partner-ship with Boeing and its employees,” said Neal Keny-Guyer, Mercy Corps’ chief executive officer. “In a time of disaster, Boeing realizes that all of us, as global citizens, have a duty to lend a hand to those in need.”
Through their support of humanitarian relief efforts, such as the catastrophic December 2004 tsunami and the lesser-known ‘silent disaster’ in Uganda where decades of conflict have forced 1.6 million people out of their homes, Boeing has demonstrated its commitment to helping people and communities recover,” Keny-Guyer continued. “They are truly committed to making the world a better place.”
Disasters hit close at home as well as in far reaches of the globe, as U.S.-based Boeing experienced in 2005. Employee and company contributions to the American Red Cross for Hurricane Katrina relief efforts in Louisiana and Mississippi totaled more than $9.3 million. Those contribu-
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Contact Information For Featured Nonprofits And Non-governmental Organizations
American Red Cross 2025 E Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. U.S.A. 20006 202-303-4850
Asociación Nuevo Amanecer +34 902116504
Asociación Proyecto Hombre Osa Mayor 19 Aravaca Madrid, Spain 28023 +34 91 357 0104
Associazione Italiana Persone Down Viale delle Milizie 106 Rome, Italy +39 63 723909
Bellevue Math Standards Partnership 12111 NE First Street Bellevue, Washington U.S.A. 98015 425-456-4199
Big Brothers/Big Sisters (YWCA NSW) 5-11 Wentworth Avenue Sydney NSW Australia 2000 +61 2 9285 6262
CARE 70 East Lake Street, Suite 1430 Chicago, Illinois U.S.A. 60601 312-641-1430
Downside Up 3rd Parkovays Street 14A Moscow, Russian Federation 105043 +7 495 165 5536
Golden Key 33 En Ji Li, Haidian District Beijing, China 100036 +86 10 88122497
India Sponsor Foundation B 110, Defence Colony New Delhi Delhi, India 110024 +91 11 6563 4460
inJAz Bahrain P.O. Box 1705 Office 606/607, 6th floor, Entrance 3 Manama Center, Government Road 316 Manama, Kingdom of Bahrain +973 17225050
Inkilap Elementary School Koroglu Cad. No. 17 Bolu, Turkey 90 312 285 4922
JA China 5F, Building 7 Ju Long Garden Beijing, China 100027 86 10 6551 5235
Japanese Society for Rehabilitation of Persons with Disabilities 22-1,1-Chome, Toyama, Shinjyuku Tokyo, Japan 162-0052 +81 3 5273 0601
Les Restaurants du Coeur 8 rue d’Athenes Paris, France 75009 +33 1 53 32 23 29
Mercy Corps 3015 SW First Avenue Portland, Oregon U.S.A. 97201 503-796-6800
NATAL Israel Trauma Center for Victims of Terror and War HaShomer 5 Tel Aviv, Israel 61041 972 3 5101047
New Leaders for New Schools National Office 30 West 26th Street, Second Floor New York, New York U.S.A. 10010 646-792-1070
Nigerian Friendship Library (The Compassionate Listening Project) 20940 Jack Davis Place Indianola, Washington U.S.A. 98342 360-297-2280
Nozominosono Support Foundation 2120-2 Terao-machi Takasaki-city, Japan 370-0865 +81 27 325 1501
Room to Read P.O. Box 29127 The Presidio San Francisco, California U.S.A. 94129 415-561-3331
Seoul Science High School 1-1, Hyehwa-dong, Jongno-gu Seoul 110-530 Korea 822 740 6210
Soccorso Clown Project Via Leone X,8 Florence, Italy 50129 +39 0 5547 0305
St. Joseph Ballet 1810 N Main Street Santa Ana, California U.S.A. 92706 714-541-8314
St. Patrick Center 800 N Tucker Boulevard St. Louis, Missouri U.S.A. 63101 314-802-0683
STEP 21 The Youth Initiative for Tolerance and Responsibility Steinhöft 7 “Haus am Fleet” 20459 Hamburg +49 40 37859612
The Prince’s Trust 18 Park Square East London, United Kingdom NW 14LH 00 4420 7543 1234
The Smith Family Level 8, 35 Pitt Street Sydney NSW 2000 02 9085 7222
Water for Schools 21 Vorster Street Limpopo Province South Africa 920 155160572
Vietnam Veterans of America Foundation (VVAF) 1025 Vermont Avenue, N.W., 7th Floor Washington, D.C. U.S.A. 20005 202-483-9222
Winnipeg Art Gallery 300 Memorial Boulevard Winnipeg, Manitoba Canada R3A OB4 204-786-6641
The Boeing Company100 North Riverside PlazaChicago, IL 60606-1596U.S.A.
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