Faith Hill Appears in New PSA to Encourage People to Serve Their Communities

Faith Hill Appears in New PSA to Encourage People to Serve Their Communities

PSA Developed With Support From AARP's Create The Good

Part of New Volunteer Initiative Called iParticipate Led By The Entertainment Industry Foundation

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 15 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- GRAMMY(R) Award-winning Country star Faith Hill appears in a new public service announcement that encourages Americans to volunteer their time to make America a better place. The spot is one of a series of PSAs to be launched this fall on all major broadcast networks - ABC, CBS, FOX and NBC - as part of the Entertainment Industry Foundation's iParticipate (www.iParticipate.org) national initiative to promote volunteerism with AARP's Create the Good (www.CreateTheGood.org).

The 30-second spot featuring Hill highlights a few of the many ways that people can volunteer. Whether helping paint a local community center, volunteering to assist the elderly, or serving at a soup kitchen, there are numerous ways to make a difference in one's own neighborhood. Hill closes the spot with the simple question, "There are so many ways to serve. What will you do?"

Produced by filmmaker Jesse Dylan with his agency FreeForm, the PSA asks Americans to find a volunteer opportunity at wwwiParticipate.org. The PSA was developed with support from Create The Good, AARP's network of more than nine million volunteers, donors and activists, which has teamed with iParticipate to call on Americans to make more good things happen, by encouraging everyone to give anything from 5 minutes to 5 hours to make our nation a better place.

"We are pleased to join EIF in encouraging all Americans to dedicate time to service - whether they have five minutes, five hours or five days," said Thomas Nelson, AARP's chief operating officer. "We know that activating 50+ volunteers is critical to realizing the promise of this new era of service, and working with EIF allows us to connect with potential volunteers - those who aren't yet engaged or who are looking for new and different opportunities - and hook them up with ways to serve that work for them."

EIF is mobilizing the entire entertainment community around the ground-breaking, multi-year iParticipate campaign, which promotes a new way of thinking about service and seeks to persuade millions more Americans to volunteer regularly. As a centerpiece, the major broadcast networks and others will spotlight service through scripted programming, segments and PSAs with inspirational messages and storylines about volunteerism. More than 60 shows have signed up to participate.

Other elements of EIF iParticipate initiative include:

-- a dedicated website iParticipate.org, designed to make it easier than
ever before for millions of Americans to find volunteer opportunities
in their local communities across five key areas of service: Children
and Education, Community Health and Wellness, Financial Security,
Environmental Conservation, and Support for Veterans and Military
Families. The website features calendars of events, maps, digital
tool kits and uses the power of social networking vehicles like
Facebook, making it simple for individuals not only to volunteer, but
to recruit friends to join them;
-- a series of celebrity-driven public service announcements that will
reinforce the importance of volunteerism and supporting causes like
Welcome Back Veterans. Blythe Danner, Gwyneth Paltrow, Morgan Freeman
and Matthew McConaughey are among the performers featured in the PSAs.

-- grants from the Entertainment Industry Foundation to key volunteer
organizations to help build capacity to accept, train and deploy
volunteers.

iParticipate was recently launched in New York's Times Square. EIF was joined by New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and 15 mayors from around the country, numerous celebrities, including Ashton Kutcher, Tyler Perry, Tim Daly (ABC), Christine Baranski (CBS), Randy Jackson (FOX), Michelle Trachtenberg (NBC), among others, and key service groups to launch the initiative.

The rate at which Americans volunteer regularly has not increased in 40 years and has generally remained around 26%, according to a survey conducted by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Nearly half of all people who currently volunteer started because they were asked by someone they know.

About Create The Good

AARP represents almost 40 million 50+ Americans, half of whom are still working and nearly half of whom volunteer each year. The non-profit, non-partisan membership organization has established an Office of Volunteer & Civic Engagement, as well as Create The Good, a network of members and their families who are looking for opportunities to make a difference. AARP works to inspire millions more Americans to serve through its television, radio, web and publications channels, including AARP The Magazine, the definitive voice for 50+ Americans and the world's largest-circulation magazine with over 34.5 million readers. In addition, the organization is home to AARP Foundation, an affiliated charity that provides security, protection, and empowerment to older persons in need with support from thousands of volunteers, donors, and sponsors. AARP has staffed offices in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. For more information, visit AARP.org/CreateTheGood.

About the Entertainment Industry Foundation

The Entertainment Industry Foundation, a 501(c)(3) organization, is the leading charitable organization of entertainment industry, and has distributed hundreds of millions of dollars to support programs addressing critical health, education and social issues. Visit www.eifoundation.org or www.iParticipate.org.

Source: Entertainment Industry Foundation

CONTACT: Maurine Slutzky, Entertainment Industry Foundation,
+1-213-240-3923, mslutzky@eifoundation.org; or Elly Spinweber, AARP,
+1-202-434-2624, espinweber@aarp.org

Web Site: http://www.eifoundation.org/

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