The History Channel(R) Awards a $10,000 Grant to Florida's 'Looking For Angola' Project

The History Channel(R) Awards a $10,000 Grant to Florida's 'Looking For Angola' Project

Save Our History: Preserving Black History Grant Presented on February 26 at Special Ceremony

NEW YORK, Feb. 27 /PRNewswire/ -- "Looking for Angola," a project sponsored by The Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH), received a $10,000 Save Our History: Preserving Black History Grant, awarded by The History Channel(R) with the local support of Comcast, in a special ceremony at the Asolo Mertz Theatre on February 26th. The grant was established by The History Channel to recognize organizations that work to preserve African-American history and engage their communities in the study and appreciation of the past.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20060227/NYM160http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20051031/HISTORYLOGO )

Executives from The History Channel and Comcast, the cable operator responsible for making The History Channel available in Sarasota and Manatee counties, were on hand to present the check to Vickie Oldham, "Looking for Angola" Project Director.

"Looking for Angola" is a far-reaching project which is piecing together the rich history of Angola, a self-supporting community of slaves who escaped to the Tampa Bay area seeking freedom. It is believed that Angola may have been established around 1812 and may have stretched from Tampa Bay to areas near the Manatee River and into parts of Sarasota. The 'Looking for Angola" project is a cornerstone of ASALH's mission to promote, research, preserve, interpret and disseminate information about black life, history and culture to the community.

The $10,000 Save Our History: Preserving Black History Grant will be specifically used to help fund archeological digs at the site of the former Angola settlement. The grant will also help involve students who will learn about the history of Angola and participate in the site excavation as well as create workshops to help educate the entire community.

"'Looking for Angola' is not only a Florida treasure but a national treasure and is a key piece to critically important African-American historical research. It's a great pleasure to recognize its value as part of the richness of American history as a whole," said Dr. Libby O'Connell, Senior Vice President of Corporate Outreach and Chief Historian, AETN and The History Channel. "The study of the past, which includes times of great injustice as well as times of triumph, helps us define a better future. We wholeheartedly support the society's plans to educate children and communities on all aspects of our history."

"The Save Our History Grant will ensure that a high-quality education component will offer students and teachers the wonderful opportunity to be linked with archaeologists and anthropologists who'll share the latest developments in the search for Angola," said Vicki Oldham, Project Director, Looking for Angola. "We want to thank The History Channel for making a hands- on learning experience possible which will help make the past come alive for our students."

"Comcast recognizes its responsibility to promote the diversity of the communities where we live and serve, and we are excited to be involved in this commendable project. Through the partnership with the Sarasota and Manatee County School Districts, Comcast believes 'Looking for Angola' will positively impact the youth of Sarasota and Manatee Counties by bringing visibility to a vital part of American history," said Rod Dagenais, Area Vice President of Comcast West Florida.

Now reaching more than 88 million Nielsen subscribers, The History Channel(R), "Where History Lives," brings history to life in a powerful manner and provides an inviting place where people experience history personally and connect their own lives to the great lives and events of the past. The History Channel has earned six News and Documentary Emmy(R) Awards and received the prestigious Governor's Award from the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences for the network's "Save Our History(R)" campaign dedicated to historic preservation and history education. The History Channel web site is located at http://www.history.com/.

About Comcast:

Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ:CMCSA)(NASDAQ:CMCSK) (http://www.comcast.com/) is the nation's leading provider of cable, entertainment and communications products and services. With 21.4 million cable customers, 8.5 million high-speed Internet customers, and 1.3 million voice customers, Comcast is principally involved in the development, management and operation of broadband cable systems and in the delivery of programming content. The Company's content networks and investments include E! Entertainment Television, Style Network, The Golf Channel, OLN, G4, AZN Television, PBS KIDS Sprout, TV One and four regional Comcast SportsNets. The Company also has a majority ownership in Comcast-Spectacor, whose major holdings include the Philadelphia Flyers NHL hockey team, the Philadelphia 76ers NBA basketball team and two large multipurpose arenas in Philadelphia. Comcast Class A common stock and Class A Special common stock trade on The NASDAQ Stock Market under the symbols CMCSA and CMCSK, respectively.

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Photo: NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20060227/NYM160
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20051031/HISTORYLOGO
Source: The History Channel

CONTACT: Susan S. Raisch, +1-718-667-5576, for The History Channel;
Terri Weldon, Government & Public Affairs, +1-941-342-2129, for Comcast

Web site: http://www.history.com/
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NOTE TO EDITORS: For more information and photography please visit us on the web at http://www.historychannelpress.com.

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