02 September 2011
PUBLIC INVITED TO LOG ONTO WWW.COCA-COLA.IETO VOTE FOR THEIR FAVOURITE PROJECTS
45 NON PROFIT ORGANISATIONS GO HEAD TO HEAD AS THEY ARE SHORTLISTED AS PART OF ‘COCA-COLA 125 YEARS THANK YOU FUND’
NINE ORGANISATIONS FROM NORTHERN IRELAND GO THROUGH
PUBLIC INVITED TO LOG ONTO WWW.COCA-COLA.IETO VOTE FOR THEIR FAVOURITE PROJECTS
Belfast, Friday 2nd September, 2011: Coca-Cola has today announced details of the forty five organisationsshortlisted following the review of hundreds of applications for the ‘Coca-Cola 125 Years Thank You Fund’.
Fifteen of the final forty five organisations will secure funding from the €125,000/£110,619 fund which is being used to support non-profit community and development groups as part of Coca-Cola’s 125th birthday celebrations across the island of Ireland.
Nine organisations from Northern Ireland have been shortlisted as part of the fund which was designed to thank Coca-Cola’s loyal consumers in Ireland.
The ‘Coca-Cola 125 Years Thank You Fund’, which is being operated in partnership with the Northern Ireland Council for Voluntary Action (NICVA) and The Wheel has been designed to support projects and initiatives that are having a positive impact on the quality of life of communities on the island of Ireland. A total of fifteen grants will be made – ten of €10,000/£8,849 and five of €5,000/£4,424.
Speaking today Aedamar Howlett, Country Manager Coca-Cola Ireland, said that creating the shortlist was difficult because of the quality of the entries. “We are delighted with the response to the ‘Coca-Cola 125 Years Thank You Fund’. We received over six hundred applications from across the island of Ireland. The applicants proposed some very innovative projects and schemes which could have a really positive impact on their communities. We would like to thank everyone for taking the time to enter and for showing us what great work is happening in communities every day.
“We understand that many non-profit and community groups are under financial pressure and this made the short listing process even more challenging but we are confident that we have chosen deserving projects that are really going to make a big difference to communities nationwide. I would encourage the public to log onto www.coca-cola.ie to view the shortlist and vote for the projects which they feel are most deserving. This has been a great experience for Coca-Cola, we have had a long relationship with Ireland and this has been a great way to celebrate that relationship as part of our 125th birthday celebrations. I wish all those shortlisted the very best of luck in this final round.”
The public vote will be live from yesterday, the 1st of September and will close on 30th of September 2011. The public vote will account for 50% of the total vote with the judging panel awarding the remaining 50% of votes available. The fifteen winners of the grants will be announced during October 2011. The top ten will receive individual grants for €10,000/£8,849 with the five runners up receiving individual grants of €5,000/£4,424.
The judging panel is made up of a variety of community leaders who were selected because of their proven track-record in making positive contributions to society. Members include:
· Dame Mary Peters, Past Olympian
· James Laverty, NICVA
· Aedamar Howlett, Country Manager Coca-Cola Ireland
· Sarah O’Connor, Executive Director at The Federation of Irish Sports
· Michael Ewing, CEO, Irish Environmental Network
· Eoghan Murphy, Fine Gael TD in Dublin South East
· Deirdre Garvey , CEO, The Wheel
· James Laverty, NICVA
The €125,000/£110,619 will be granted to non-profit community, voluntary and charitable organisations throughout the Island of Ireland to help support initiatives focused on the following areas; Social and Education Programmes aimed at Youth, Healthy and Active Lifestyles, and Environmental Leadership.
For further information and to view the shortlist for the ‘Coca-Cola 125 Years Thank You Fund’ log onto www.coca-cola.ie
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