The Midwest Shelter for Homeless Veterans, the October 2011 winner of $25,000 from The Home Depot in The Home Depot Foundation’s year-long Facebook voting program called Aprons in Action, will compete against 10 other monthly winners for $250,000 in the final round of the contest. Voting begins March 1 and runs through March 31 at www.facebook.com/homedepotfoundation. The organization with the most votes at the end of the month will win the $250,000 grand prize. Organizations with the second and third most votes will receive $150,000 and $100,000 from The Home Depot Foundation, respectively.
 
During the Aprons in Action Contest, which began last April, The Home Depot Foundation’s Facebook fans have already helped 11 nonprofit organizations win $25,000 each to better their communities. In the March 2012 round of the competition, The Midwest Shelter for Homeless Veterans is competing against 10 other monthly winners from across the country. Competing finalists include:
 
·         April 2011: Great Falls Children's Receiving Home (Great Falls, MT)
·         May 2011: Ronald McDonald House of Detroit (Detroit, MI)
·         June 2011: Jerusalem House (Atlanta, GA)
·         July 2011: New Orleans Area Habitat for Humanity (New Orleans, LA)
·         August 2011: Northwest Hospital Foundation (Seattle, WA)
·         September 2011: Taylor VFW Post #4422 (Taylor, MI)
·         October 2011: Midwest Shelter for Homeless Veterans (Wheaton, IL)
·         November 2011: Utah State Veterans Home (Salt Lake City, UT)
·         December 2011: LifeBUILDERS of Detroit (Detroit, MI)
January 2012: Jewish Family Service of Metropolitan Detroit (West Bloomfield, MI)
·         February 2012: Veterans Guest House (Reno, NV)
 
“Winning $25,000 from The Home Depot during the first round of Aprons in Action was such an honor, and we are so thankful for the recognition,” said Robert Adams, President of the Midwest Shelter for Homeless Veterans. “If we actually win the grand prize of $250,000 from The Home Depot Foundation, it would transform our organization because we would be able to develop and fund  more programs that would directly improve the lives of veterans in the Midwest. Permanent Outreach, a job development program, and a mobile food pantry are just a few programs we consider, but cannot afford. So we encourage everyone to go to Facebook and vote for us!”
 
Working together, the Midwest Shelter for Homeless Veterans and Team Depot volunteers have already rebuilt the front porch of Midwest Shelter, making it safer and more usable.
 
Across the country, The Home Depot Associates give back to their communities by volunteering their time and talents with local nonprofit organizations, like the Midwest Shelter for Homeless Veterans. The Aprons in Action Program recognizes these successful partnerships and gives each of the featured nonprofits the opportunity to do additional work with Team Depot volunteers to better their communities.
 
“Aprons in Action is our $1 million effort to support the most active and engaged nonprofit organizations across the country,” said Kelly Caffarelli, president of The Home Depot Foundation. “Through Aprons in Action, we have already distributed $500,000 to 44 deserving organizations from across the nationwide Team Depot network, allowing them to continue their great work serving our communities.”
 
 
How To Vote
Voting runs from March 1 at 9 a.m. ET through March 31 at 12 p.m. ET.  Aprons in Action is on Facebook at www.facebook.com/homedepot or www.facebook.com/homedepotfoundation.
 
The final percentages of votes for each nonprofit will be posted on The Home Depot and The Home Depot Foundation’s Facebook pages.
 
For more information and to view the program rules, visit The Home Depot on Facebook or go to www.homedepotfoundation.org.
 
About The Home Depot Foundation:
In 2011, The Home Depot Foundation committed $30 million over three years to nonprofit organizations dedicated to improving the homes of economically disadvantaged veterans.  Through Team Depot, the company's associate-led volunteer program, thousands of Home Depot associates volunteer their time and talents to positively transform neighborhoods and perform basic repairs and modifications to homes and to the facilities serving veterans with critical housing needs.
 
Since its formation in 2002, The Home Depot Foundation has granted more than $300 million to nonprofit organizations improving homes and lives in local communities. To learn more and see our associates in action, visit www.homedepotfoundation.org, follow us on Twitter @homedepotfdn, and like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/homedepotfoundation.