Dallas, TX, April 6, 2010 – The Roseland Community Center, a multi-family residential complex and social-service program of Central Dallas Ministries (CDM), is getting a facelift on Thursday, April 8th, courtesy of ARAMARK, a leading global professional services company and corporate partner of CDM. Part of the day’s activities includes the expansion of Roseland’s community garden, which provides neighbors with fresh vegetables and plants.
The ongoing initiative with CDM and the day’s enhancement projects are part of ARAMARK Building Community, a company-wide program that helps neighborhood centers tackle community issues by fostering long-term support for those centers in more than 40 cities by the end of 2010.
CDM is one of the largest, social service organizations in North Texas and operates a network of programs focused on providing solutions to help fight poverty through hunger relief, health care, housing and hope. The organization has served the working poor and homeless of Dallas for 22 years and has the county’s largest food pantry.
“Our goal is to restore faith in the lives of our neighbors, and the work ARAMARK is doing allows us to really focus on strengthening our existing programs and services,” said Janet Morrison, director of education for Central Dallas Ministries and the educational outreach program at Roseland Community Center. “With their assistance, our facilities will be more uplifting and will provide a refuge for our community members, but more importantly ARAMARK is creating educational experiences and an expanded sense of hope and community.”
More than 100 ARAMARK volunteers will participate in 18 enhancement projects which will include reviving Teen University by creating college themed pendant murals, installing a new flat-screen TV and new bookshelves to give local youth a retreat to focus on academics and a safe place to gather on the weekends. The team will give Roseland’s heavily used gymnasium a fresh coat of paint, and construct shelves and cubby boxes for the K-12 After-School classrooms.
The community garden restoration will help promote a more united community and foster healthy eating and wellness education. The fresh produce grown at Roseland can also supplement CDM’s
Food Pantry just down the street.
“Community centers serve as the backbone for local neighborhoods, providing comprehensive solutions for families who need it most. At ARAMARK, we are so proud of what we have already achieved together with CDM for the greater Dallas area in just two years,” said Jamie Wooldridge, regional vice president for ARAMARK Uniform Services and local ARAMARK Building Community sponsor. “The great thing about ARAMARK Building Community is the ability for us to connect our expert resources and company passion for volunteering to community centers and make a real difference in these local neighborhoods.”
In conjunction with the day’s service projects, ARAMARK is also holding a “Spring Clean Out Your Closet” drive to collect everything from small house wares to toys and linens for CDM’s Thrift Store.
In 2008, ARAMARK volunteers from across the North Texas area participated in a similar project with Central Dallas Ministries which beautified the Health Clinic and the Food Pantry ongoing collaboration.
About Central Dallas Ministries
Central Dallas Food Pantry (d/b/a Central Dallas Ministries) exists to build genuine community in the neighborhoods where we live and work in order to alleviate the root causes of poverty. Founded in 1988 as a small pantry for the working poor, CDM has grown into a broader community development organization with 16 programs focused on hunger relief, health care, housing and hope. We do not consider the people that we serve as clients, rather, we prefer to see them, and ourselves as each other’s neighbors. Each year, CDM helps thousands of our neighbors battle poverty, including more than 43,000 neighbors in 2009. For more information visit the CDM Web site, www.centraldallasministries.org/.
About ARAMARK Building Community
ARAMARK Building Community enriches the lives of families in need by supporting local community centers to help people of all generations learn, earn and thrive. ARAMARK recognizes the important role community centers play in addressing the comprehensive needs of individuals and families and is providing a range of resources including grants, volunteers and in-kind contributions. Through ARAMARK Building Community, volunteers use their expertise to help youth and adults develop critical, employable work skills and connect them to career opportunities; support families with nutrition and wellness education; provide basic needs such as food and clothing; and help identified partners run cleaner, safer and more efficient facilities to enhance and strengthen programs on an ongoing basis.
About ARAMARK
ARAMARK is a leader in professional services, providing award-winning food services, facilities management, and uniform and career apparel to health care institutions, universities and school districts, stadiums and arenas, and businesses around the world. The company is recognized as one of the "World's Most Ethical Companies" by the Ethisphere Institute, as the industry leader in FORTUNE magazine's "World's Most Admired Companies," and as one of America's Largest Private Companies by both FORTUNE and Forbes magazines. ARAMARK seeks to responsibly address issues that matter to its clients, customers, employees and communities by focusing on employee advocacy, environmental stewardship, health and wellness, and community involvement. Headquartered in Philadelphia, ARAMARK has approximately 255,000 employees serving clients in 22 countries. Learn more at www.twitter.com/aramarknews.
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