Across the globe, a handful of corporations have developed reputations for being among the first to donate money, time, and various other resources in the wake of natural disasters, and that certainly includes Ford Motor Company. The Blue Oval is almost always one of the first companies to donate whatever it can to help following everything from hurricanes to flooding to earthquakes, tornadoes, and even just devastating winter storms. That’s also now the case in Valencia, Spain, as Ford has mobilized a group of volunteers following devastating flooding in the area.
Ford Philanthropy is currently working with international grant making partner GlobalGiving to set up a Spain Flood Relief Fund to help survivors with emergency aid and long-term support, and has already pledged a $100,000 donation to aid in those efforts. Hundreds of Blue Oval workers in the area – where the Ford Valencia Assembly plant is located – are also volunteering to help those in need, and dealers across the area are pitching in as well. Meanwhile, the fire department at Ford’s Almussafes facility has been providing uninterrupted support to flood relief efforts, working 12-hour shifts in coordination with the UME and the Valencia Fire Brigade Consortium.
“At Ford we are proud of the hundreds of Ford Valencia employees who, from the very first moment, have lent their help and with whom we have coordinated the collaboration with different organizations and NGOs,” said Daniel Ruiz, Director Valencia Site Operations. “The first steps taken so far have been actions of economic support, volunteering, provision of storage logistics and vehicle transfer among other initiatives, to which new aid is continually being added as requests and applications are received from associations and organizations of all kinds. We have prioritized the provision of different vehicles, such as the Red Cross Spain or World Central Kitchen, a non-governmental non-profit organization dedicated to supplying meals around the world after natural disasters, and led by chef José Andrés.”
“Also with the Red Cross, in coordination with the Generalitat Valenciana, we have facilitated the storage of supplies, providing the warehouses of our factory to create a special center at the Ford Almussafes plant for the reception and distribution of aid trucks,” Ruiz added. “Ford Spain created a volunteer platform in Almussafes organized and composed of hundreds of company employees, to provide support according to requests to all kinds of NGOs, municipalities or state forces, with special attention to the distribution of food. Some of the associations to carry out this volunteering have been Ayuda A Una Familia and Mensajeros De La Paz, and the already mentioned Red Cross and WCK.”
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