Kohl's 'gives back' with $18M in community grants

Kohl’s is standing behind its stated mission to “give back” to the communities it serves by announcing that it donated nearly $18 million in 2014.

The community grants benefited more than 8,500 nonprofits across the country in 2014 through Kohl’s best-in-class Associates in Action (AiA) volunteer program.

“Kohl’s AiA program has seen a steady increase in associate participation with thousands of volunteer events held and millions of volunteer hours donated to nonprofit organizations since the program began,” said Bevin Bailis, Kohl’s senior vice president of public relations and communications. “Our associates are deeply committed to service, both in our stores and in the communities in which we do business. To keep the momentum going, Kohl’s kicked off 2015 with a volunteer event benefiting tens of thousands of patients at hospitals across America.”

Since the program’s inception, Kohl’s, through the AiA program, has donated nearly $100 million in corporate grants, serving thousands of youth-serving nonprofits nationwide.

To kick off 2015 volunteering, nearly 3,000 Kohl’s associates from around the country participated in Kohl’s largest-ever volunteer event in Orlando, Fla., this month as part of the company’s annual leadership meeting, packing 50,000 care packages of kid-friendly activity items for children receiving services from more than 160 Kohl’s Cares hospital partners.

The AiA program is part of Kohl’s overall philanthropic platform, Kohl’s Cares®, which includes the Kohl’s Cares cause merchandise program, Kohl’s Cares Scholarship Program, Kohl’s Cares Hospital Program and fundraising gift card program. Additional information and how to qualify for an AiA grant can be found online.

Kohl’s operates 1,162 stores in 49 states.