“It’s about the kids,” said Norm Daniels, president and CEO of G.I. Joe’s, a chain of sports & auto stores based in Wilsonville, OR, as he announced that the G.I. Joe’s Foundation established just three years ago has to date made donations totaling over $500,000.

Mary Ann Bauer, administrator of the G.I. Joe’s Foundation, stated that there were 152 grants made in the last year that reached over 100,000 youth. Grants to local organizations have funded school athletic field lighting, team uniforms, scouting activities, the Children’s Cancer Association, Boys and Girls Clubs, and Special Olympics, among others.

“We have less and less public funding for youth activities, so there is a definite need in this area, that’s why the foundation focuses on it. Currently we have requests from Northwest groups for the next twelve months totaling over $200,000,” Bauer said.

A five-person Board of Directors administers the foundation and makes grants, which provide support to youth teams, outdoor clubs and community-based programs designed to improve the lives of youth in the areas where G.I. Joe’s stores are located. The foundation also supports regional programs working to improve environmental quality as it relates to outdoor activities for Northwest residents.

Two years ago a golf tournament with G.I. Joe’s vendors and employees was created to increase the funding for the G.I. Joe’s Foundation. This year the tournament raised over $185,000.

Foundation director Ron Menconi, vice president of merchandising and marketing at G.I. Joe’s, said, “Thanks to our customers, who continue to buy the great products we sell, G.I. Joes and our suppliers are able to support the G.I. Joe’s Foundation. It’s a successful partnership that benefits the communities where we do business.”

G.I. Joe’s is a privately held full line retailer of sporting goods and automotive products, headquartered in Wilsonville, OR. They currently operate 23 stores throughout Oregon and Washington. In 2005, G.I. Joe’s expects to generate sales in excess of $210 million.