Apr 18 2005
Nearly two months ago, LaSalle Bank instituted its "More Patrol" campaign, whose goal is to give back to Chicago
area residents through small initiatives and more substantial projects which assist people in need.
On Sunday, April 17, more than 40 LaSalle employee volunteers and "More
Patrol" members will gather to refurbish the home of a 56-year-old grandmother
and LaSalle customer who lives in the Chicago Lawn/Gage Park neighborhood.
Volunteers will lay sod; add landscaping; install a swing set; build a patio;
clean the yard; and make other improvements to the house's exterior. Earlier
in the week, the City of Chicago Department of Housing re-roofed her home,
provided new gutters, soffits and insulation to help reduce their heating
bills. They also installed life-safety devices including smoke detectors and
carbon monoxide detectors.
"The 'More Patrol' has two goals: to provide small ways to help brighten
peoples' days, but also to partner with local nonprofits to make meaningful
contributions to at-risk communities," said Mary Laraia, group senior vice
president of Civic and Community Development. Neighborhood Housing Services,
Bottomless Closet, Neighbor Space, North Lawndale Employment Network, the
Union League Girls and Boys Club and SOS Children's Villages are among the
nonprofits that benefited from the "More Patrol" campaign.
"We're particularly thrilled to partner with Neighborhood Housing Services
since they do such outstanding work to low-income families achieve home
ownership," added Laraia. "The family whose house we're repairing has endured
many hardships in order to keep their home, so we're proud to be able to help
them."
The homeowner is a long-time resident of the Chicago Lawn/Gage Park
neighborhood. She and other family members have lived in their current home
for a number of years, and due to illness in the family, it has fallen into
disrepair. "NHS greatly values the opportunity to help this homeowner," said
NHS Director of Development, Public Relations and Marketing Mary Fran Riley.
"The homeowner is such a wonderful mother and grandmother and because two
family members have recently been ill, she's not had the opportunity to keep
up with her home repairs. We're honored to help her."
Other "More Patrol" activities ranged from distributing free cab vouchers
to Loop workers to feeding downtown parking meters to providing morning and
lunchtime musical entertainment for LaSalle Bank employees. The program wraps
up on Tuesday, April 19.
Neighborhood Housing Services of Chicago, Inc. (NHS) is a nonprofit
organization working to rebuild low- and moderate-income neighborhoods in the
city of Chicago that are experiencing deterioration and disinvestment. NHS
stimulates community investment through a partnership of residents, business
and government. NHS' mission is to rekindle hope in a neighborhood's future,
to restore conventional and local investment in the community and to leave
behind empowered, self-reliant residents.
Greater Southwest Development Corporation (GSDC) is a nonprofit community
development corporation that actively contributes to residential, commercial,
and industrial revitalization efforts in Southwest Chicago.
Established in 1974, GSDC provides resources, education, technical
assistance and financial support that positions neighborhoods to compete for
investment and maintain a mixed-income economy. By working to combat
disinvestment and reverse decline, GSDC helps ensure that the southwest side
of Chicago will continue to grow as a neighborhood of choice in which to live
and work.
LaSalle Bank is headquartered in Chicago and has $63.7 billion in assets
and $37.7 billion in deposits. One of the largest banks in the Midwest and
second largest in Chicago, LaSalle Bank serves individuals, small businesses,
middle-market companies and institutions with streamlined solutions to meet
the scope of customers' financial needs. LaSalle has more than 140 retail
locations and 500 ATMs throughout Chicago and the neighboring suburbs. Online
banking is offered through lasallebank.com.
LaSalle maintains commercial banking offices in Boca Raton, Cleveland,
Cincinnati, Columbus, Denver, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Milwaukee,
Minneapolis, New England (covering Connecticut, Boston and New Jersey),
Pittsburgh, Des Moines, Rockford and Peoria, Illinois, St. Louis, Tampa and
Miami. Subsidiaries include LaSalle National Leasing Corporation, LaSalle
Business Credit, LLC and ABN AMRO Financial Services, Inc.
Parent company LaSalle Bank Corporation is headquartered in Chicago with
$103.4 billion in assets. LaSalle Bank Corporation is a subsidiary of
Netherlands-based ABN AMRO Bank N.V., one of the world's largest banks with
total assets of EUR 632.8 billion with more than 3,000 locations in over 60
countries.