The Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis Receives $2.5 Million Gift from Enterprise Holdings Foundation and the Taylor Family

ST. LOUIS, July 2, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis announced today that it has received a $2.5 million donation from the Enterprise Holdings Foundation and from the Enterprise's owners, the Taylor family. Of that amount, $1 million will help fund the organization's Save Our Sons program and $1.5 million will support the Centennial Campaign that marks the League's 100^th anniversary in St. Louis.

"Time and time again, the Taylors and Enterprise have been there for us, and we're most grateful to them for this generous gift and their longstanding support for the Urban League movement, both at the local and national levels," said Michael McMillan, President and CEO of the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis. "Here in St. Louis, they clearly share our commitment to expanding educational and economic development opportunities and making this community a better place for all."

Since its establishment in 2015, the Save Our Sons program has quickly become one of the St. Louis Urban League's signature initiatives. It provides job skills training for economically disadvantaged African-American men aged 17 and over, helping them gain the skills they need to find and keep good jobs and earn livable wages. So far, Save Our Sons has helped nearly 400 men become gainfully employed.

The Centennial Campaign was created to commemorate the Urban League's first 100 years in St. Louis. Founded in 1918, its mission is to empower African Americans and others throughout the region and help them secure economic self-reliance, social equality and civil rights. Since then, the St. Louis Urban League has grown to become the organization's No. 1 local affiliate, as ranked by the National Urban League. With 13 locations, 225 employees and a $20 million budget, it serves 100,000 residents of the St. Louis region with a wide range of programs that promote community empowerment, economic opportunity, educational excellence and equality, and civil rights and advocacy.

"When it comes to our commitment to expanding economic mobility and workforce development through education, we've had no greater partner over the past two decades than the Urban League," said Carolyn Kindle Betz, Senior Vice President and Executive Director of the Enterprise Holdings Foundation, and granddaughter of Enterprise founder Jack Taylor. "We're honored today to celebrate the League's century of service to our community and to help the Save Our Sons program continue its tremendous record of success."

Since the late Jack Taylor founded Enterprise Holdings in 1957, the small start-up has grown to become the world's largest car rental operator, with 10,000 locations in more than 90 countries and territories throughout the world, and more than 5,600 employees in the St. Louis area alone.

Over the years, the Taylor family and Enterprise Holdings have supported the National Urban League and its local affiliates in St. Louis and around the country. Enterprise Holdings Executive Chairman Andrew C. Taylor is a past member of the National Urban League's Board of Trustees and served as co-chair of the St. Louis affiliate's other recent capital campaign, the Second Century Fund. The efforts of the Second Century Fund and the Centennial Campaign will culminate at the end of 2018.

About the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis
The Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis is a social service and civil rights organization that works to fulfill its mission of Empowering Communities and Changing Lives. Programs are offered in the areas of Economic Opportunity, Community Empowerment, Education Excellence, Civil Rights and Advocacy. For more information about the Urban League please visit our website at www.ulstl.com.

SOURCE Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis

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