Alpha Kappa Alpha’s Educational Advancement Foundation (EAF) was recently awarded $25,000 from Dominick’s Charitable Foundation in recognition of EAF’s commitment to higher education in communities the grocery chain serves. The award was presented to Carolyn House Stewart, President - EAF, and Barbara F. Sutton, EAF Executive Director, by Dominick's President Brian Baer and Lauri Sanders, Director - Public Affairs & Government Relations for Dominick’s and Vice President of Dominick’s Charitable Foundation. The award was presented during a Community Partners Breakfast hosted by Dominick’s, whose parent company is Safeway, Inc.
In presenting the check, Sanders hailed EAF for its impressive record of helping minorities realize their dream of attending college. She said its broad-based commitment is underscored by the fact that EAF has awarded millions of dollars in scholarships to thousands since its founding in 1980. She said this merits Dominick's Charitable Foundation’s admiration, support and financial backing.
“There are very few causes that have the ability to impact an individual’s life as significantly as the acquisition of a college education,” said Sanders. “EAF’s mission of promoting lifelong learning made it the perfect recipient for Dominick’s to collaborate with in support of higher education.”
President Stewart personally thanked President Baer and Sanders for the generous donation and said EAF is excited about the collaboration with the Foundation. “Education is the key to opening the door to a wealth of opportunities for many students who only aspire to go to college but cannot afford to go,” declared Stewart. “This contribution from Dominick’s Charitable Foundation will go a long way toward unlocking that door and making their dreams a reality.”
ABOUT EAF:
Founded in 1980, by Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., the Educational Advancement Foundation, Inc. (EAF) is a not-for-profit, tax-exempt organization. It was created to fill a void in education funding and is the method by which Alpha Kappa Alpha ensures that there will always be support for education, its oldest program of service. As one of the few organizations administered by African American women, it has a unique approach to philanthropy that allows it to meet the diverse needs of a complex society. EAF funds are leveraged in a manner that does the most good for the most people. It supports some 250 people and projects each year—ranging from the best and the brightest college students to those who have overcome great obstacles to achieve their goals. Its beneficiaries have included everything from mentoring programs that give at-risk teens survival skills to programs for gifted middle school students. For more information, log on to www.akaeaf.org.
About Dominick’s
Dominick’s Finer Foods, a division of Safeway Inc. (NYSE: SWY) a Fortune 100 company and one of the largest food and drug retailers in North America based on sales, operates 72 stores throughout the Chicagoland area. The company operates 1,641 stores in the United States and western Canada and had annual sales of $44.2 billion in 2012. An important part of Dominick’s philosophy is to reinvest in communities through local food donations, educational programs, and community-based outreach programs. Since 1925, Dominick’s has been proud to be Chicagoland’s neighborhood grocer. For more information, visit www.Dominicks.com
