EXETER — Walmart is stocked with a number of everyday needs, from boxers and briefs to kitchen sinks. But when the needs of community organizations like the Wyoming Area School District cannot be met with what’s on store shelves, they visit the department store’s grants aisle.
Wyoming Area School District has received two grants from Walmart Foundation, the charitable arm of Walmart Stores, Inc. During the district’s school board meeting March 28, Walmart Foundation will be recognized for its contributions.
Information provided by Wyoming Area School District’s curriculum department detailed the first grant as a $2,500 sum awarded last school year to provide materials for the district’s new English curriculum. The district partnered with West Pittston Library to select high-interest literature and useful research materials on which to spend the grant money.
A second Walmart Foundation grant, awarded to the district this school year, provided another $2,500 to purchase 13 Google Chromebooks for eighth-grade writing and communications classes.
Aaron Mullins, senior manager of Walmart Corporate Communications, said Walmart Foundation awarded $1.4 billion in contributions to community organizations in 2014. Grants are awarded based on the grant seeker’s commitment to Walmart Foundation’s three areas of focus: opportunity, sustainability and community.
“It’s our mission to create opportunities so people can live better,” Mullins said. “We consider it our responsibility to make a positive impact in the communities we serve. Whether it’s through the grants we provide to the thousands of organizations that share our mission or through the inspiring volunteer efforts of Walmart associates, we are passionate about helping people live better, one community at a time.”
Mullins said community organizations that may qualify for grants can apply at Walmart Foundation’s website, giving.Walmart.com.
