HOUSTON, TX-- December 20, 2007 -- GE announced today that it would donate a total of $200,000 to four charities during the two-hour season finale of NBCU's live competition show, "Clash of the Choirs."
In "Clash of the Choirs," NBCU tapped five musical superstars -- Michael Bolton, Patti LaBelle, Nick Lachey, Kelly Rowland and Blake Shelton to embark on a musical challenge - to create America's "greatest" choir. One choir, Team Lachey, was voted by viewers at home as America's "greatest choir " and won the grand prize that will benefit their hometown.
In the spirit of the holiday season, GE will give $50,000 to each of the other four competing choirs so they may give back to their hometown charities as well.
Locally, musical celebrity Kelly Rowland and her choir received $50,000 to support their local charity in Houston, Texas. Bread of Life is a non-profit organization associated with Kelly Rowland's church, St. John's United Methodist. Kelly and long-time friend, Beyonce Knowles, donated over $250,000 to augment the church's work and outreach in the community. The organization now has a transitional housing unit named in their honor, "The Knowles-Rowland Temenos Place Apartments," where at-risk families, the homeless, persons with HIV/AIDS, and developmentally disabled receive free temporary or long-term housing.
"In a competition that is all about making a difference in our communities, we believe it was important to extend generosity to all the charities that were represented by the various choirs," said Mat Castaneda, general manager sales, North America for GE's Oil & Gas business. "This was a great opportunity to make everyone a winner in this competition."
Below are the other hometown charities that were each given $50,000:
- Michael Bolton - Domestic Violence Services of Greater New Haven & Yale Child Study Center Family Support Services - New Haven, CT
Team Bolton sang to support the Domestic Violence Services of Greater New Haven, a private, nonprofit organization that helps thousands of victims of domestic violence every year. Team Bolton also supported the Yale Child Study Center Family Support Services, a facility that delivers treatment services directly to the home of children coping with specific family problems and stresses. - Patti LaBelle -- The Abramson Cancer Center & With Our Voices - Philadelphia, PA
Team LaBelle sang to support The Abramson Cancer Center, a national leader in cancer research, patient care, and education. The monetary contribution will go towards With Our Voices, a special research and outreach program for African Americans in the Philadelphia area to improve their access and usage of cancer screenings in breast, ovarian and prostate cancer. - Blake Shelton -- Project Rebuild & Army MWR - Oklahoma City, OK
Team Shelton was singing to support Project Rebuild, an organization dedicated to giving relief to Oklahoma residents who have lost homes in recent national disasters. Team Shelton was also supporting Army MWR, a comprehensive network of support and leisure services designed to enhance the lives of soldiers and their families. Their mission is to serve the needs, interests and responsibilities of each individual in the Army community for as long as they are associated with the Army, no matter where they are.
Earlier this week on the series premiere, GE announced a $250,000 contribution to the Disabled American Veterans (DAV) whose primary mission is to help build better lives for disabled veterans and their families.
About GE
GE is Imagination at Work -- a diversified technology, media and financial services company focused on solving some of the world's toughest problems. With products and services ranging from aircraft engines, power generation, water processing and security technology to medical imaging, business and consumer financing, media content and advanced materials, GE serves customers in more than 100 countries and employs more than 300,000 people worldwide. For more information, visit the company's Web site at www.ge.com.
About GE's Oil & Gas business
GE's Oil & Gas business (www.ge.com/oilandgas) is a world leader in advanced technology equipment and services for all segments of the global oil and gas industry. Based in Florence, Italy, the company offers complete solutions for production, LNG, transportation, storage, refineries, and petrochemicals, as well as pipeline integrity solutions including pipeline inspection and pipeline asset management. Through its recent acquisition of VetcoGray, GE Oil & Gas has added products, systems and services for onshore and offshore drilling, completion and production to its portfolio.
About NBC Universal's "Clash of the Choirs"
'Clash of the Choirs', a live four-night musical event that aired on NBC Universal this week. Five musical superstars -- Michael Bolton, Patti LaBelle, Nick Lachey, Kelly Rowland and Blake Shelton -- embraced a musical challenge as they returned to their hometowns to assemble an amateur choir. Each celebrity's choir was not only competing for the title of America's best choir, but for the opportunity to give$250,000 to a charity of their choice. For more information visit www.nbc.com/clashofthechoirs.
Britta Kons
GE Healthcare Global Services
[email protected]
1-203-400-1892
Paul Doucette