Cause Marketing/ Community Programs

ST. LOUIS — Save-A-Lot, a wholly owned subsidiary of Supervalu, on Monday launched a national search for a team of two interns to serve as brand ambassadors — or more aptly titled Road Scholars — for its 2012 Fuel Your Family Road Trip campaign.

The winning team will hit the road at the end of July for a four-week tour to 12 U.S. cities to personally bring the brand to consumers and help show people how Save-A-Lot can help families with savings of up to 40%, compared with traditional grocery stores.

MOORESVILLE, N.C — Through its charitable and educational foundation, Lowe's has awarded more than $2.3 million in Spring 2012 Lowe’s Toolbox for Education grants to 543 schools in 47 states throughout the nation. The grants were given to schools and parent organizations for parent-initiated school-improvement projects benefiting K-12 public education.

The projects funded during the spring grant period include technology and safety improvements, library renovations, walking trails, greenhouses, outdoor learning environments and more.

New York -- J.C. Penney has angered a conservative group with a Father's Day ad that features a gay couple and their two young children. The print ad shows the two men playing with their 3-year-olds and reads, "First Pals - What makes Dad so cool? He's the swim coach, tent maker, best friend, bike fixer and hug giver - all rolled into one. Or two.” It is part of a spread in Penney’s June catalog, mailed out this week.

NEW YORK — Macy's is celebrating LGBT Pride Month this June with a number of initiatives including in-store events and participation in marches around the country.

New York -- A survey released Wednesday by Harris Interactive found that spending can be impacted by concern for the environment. While that has remained constant among many age groups, more young adults ages 18-to-24 say they are taking the environment into consideration when making purchases.

WAYNE, N.J. — Toys"R"Us is continuing its support of Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation (ALSF), a nonprofit organization dedicated to finding a cure for all children with cancer, through in-store and online fundraising as well as a social media campaign. Beginning this Friday, June 1 through Tuesday, July 31, the company will "Help Fight Childhood Cancer, One Cup at a Time" with an in-store and online fundraising campaign benefiting ALSF.

Hoffman Estates, Ill. -- Sears Holdings Corp. said Wednesday it has launched a new online charity project designed to parlay customer opinions into charitable contributions.

The project, called “Love/Hate: Share Your Thoughts, Send Some Love,” allows customers to review a product in order to vote for one of four charities. The participating charities competing for the grand prize of $100,000 include the American Cancer Society, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, World Vision and World Wildlife Fund.

WOONSOCKET, R.I. — CVS/pharmacy has launched a new in-store fundraising campaign named Advancing Medical Research, to support medical research and help improve the quality of life for those living with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and cystic fibrosis (CF).  Funds raised through the campaign will benefit the ALS Therapy Alliance (ATA), a leading organization dedicated to advancing ALS research, and the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, the world's leader in the search for a cure for cystic fibrosis.