General Mills Announces New Grant Initiative "Celebrating Communities of Color"

The General Mills Foundation has announced a new funding initiative to award $500,000 in grants in 2004 to Twin Cities organizations that serve communities of color. General Mills Foundation president Chris Shea made the announcement at the Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday Breakfast, an annual multicultural event hosted by the foundation and the United Negro College Fund to recognize and celebrate the life and legacy of King.

"This initiative gives General Mills deeper and broader grantmaking capabilities, including new immigrant community organizations in both Minneapolis and St. Paul," said Shea. "We also plan to engage employees in this initiative to further build community connections. This is a natural next step, as 75 percent of our employees volunteer in the Twin Cities."

"As the diversity of our community grows in both numbers and complexity, the needs increase as well," said Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak. "General Mills' 'Celebrating Communities of Color' grants will make a huge difference in the lives of many of our residents."

Through the new initiative, General Mills plans to award 50 grants of $10,000 each to Twin Cities organizations that serve communities of color: 25 in the spring of 2004 and 25 in the fall of 2004. The grant application deadline for the first grant round is April 1, 2004. Information on the grant application process is available online at the General Mills Foundation's Web site.

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