The San Pasqual Academy Foundation will receive a $200,000 grant from the San Diego Chargers as part of the National Football League Grassroots Program, it was announced today.

The grant, awarded by the Chargers, the NFL Youth Football Fund and Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC), is part of $2.5 million in field refurbishment awards allocated this year. It will be used to install a new synthetic turf field at San Pasqual Academy, a residential school for foster teens. The new field, which will be regulation size, will be available to all athletic programs at the Academy as well as the local Pop Warner football league and the neighboring public schools.

The NFL Grassroots Program, a partnership between the NFL Youth Football Fund and LISC, the nation’s leading community development support corporation, has resulted in the construction or renovation of 225 football fields nationwide in the past 12 years. During that time, the NFL Youth Football Fund has granted more than $28 million to revitalize playing fields in underserved neighborhoods. Fields are newly built or significantly renovated, with improvements such as irrigation systems, lights, bleachers, scoreboards, goal posts and turf. Grassroots grants are issued once established funding thresholds are reached for each project.

“Unlike most schools, San Pasqual Academy does not have a support base of parents and a local community to help raise funds for its athletic programs,” said A.G. Spanos, Executive Vice President-Executive Officer. “We couldn’t be happier to support this special school and their very deserving kids.”

LISC identifies local, nonprofit, neighborhood-based agencies which have an interest in building or refurbishing football fields in schools and parks in underserved neighborhoods. Through the program, the local agencies are provided with the necessary financing and technical assistance to improve the quality and safety of fields in their neighborhoods. The local agencies oversee the construction, maintenance and programming of the fields.

“Our focus at LISC is on building sustainable communities- good places to live, work, do business and raise families,” said Michael Rubinger, LISC president and CEO. “Developing recreational opportunities is a key part of that, and the NFL has been a committed partner in making it happen.”

About the NFL Youth Football Fund
Established in 1998 by the NFL and the NFL Players Association, the NFL Youth Football Fund seeks to use football as a catalyst to promote positive youth development, support youth and high school football needs nationwide and also ensure the health of grassroots football in future generations. Through the YFF’s youth football initiatives and support programs, youngsters are provided with opportunities to learn the game of football, get physically fit and stay involved in productive after-school activities with adult mentors

About LISC
LISC combines corporate, government and philanthropic resources to help nonprofit community development corporations revitalize distressed neighborhoods. Since 1980, LISC has raised more than $9.7 billion to build or rehab more than 271,000 affordable homes and develop 40 million square feet of retail, community and educational space nationwide. LISC support has leveraged nearly $31.3 billion in total development activity. For more information, visit www.lisc.org.

On January 12, a 7.0-magnitude earthquake hit the island of Haiti causing widespread death and destruction. Thousands are homeless and the death toll is rising. There is an immediate need for food, water, temporary shelter and medical services for the victims of this devastating natural disaster.

The San Diego Chargers are urging all NFL fans to reach out and help the American Red Cross bring desperately-needed supplies into this area.

Please help today by texting “HAITI” to 90999 and a donation of $10 will be given automatically to the Red Cross to help with relief efforts; the charge will appear on the next cell phone bill.

The American Red Cross is also accepting other forms of monetary donations to support relief efforts.   Donors may send checks to the local chapter, designating Haiti Relief to: American Red Cross of San Diego/Imperial Counties, 3950 Calle Fortunada, San Diego, CA 92123, or by calling (858) 309-1200.  

You can also click on this link for the local chapter of the American Red Cross at www.sdarc.org and make a donation through their secure website.

The people in Haiti need our help today.  Please join with the Chargers and support the important work of the American Red Cross.

Fans attending Sunday's game can bring joy to local youngsters this holiday season by giving a new, unwrapped toy to the Chargers Wives 20th Annual "Toys for Tots" Toy Drive presented by Cymer, at the Chargers-Chiefs game at Qualcomm Stadium.
Toys and cash donations will be collected as fans enter the stadium by the San Diego Chargers players' and coaches' wives, along with servicemen and women from the United States Marine Corps. The toys will be distributed to deserving children throughout San Diego in time for the holidays through various charitable organizations.
For more information about the Toy Drive or for additional locations where toys are being collected, log on to the official Web site of the "Toys for Tots" Toy Drive, http://www.toydrive.com.

Knowing that good eating and physical-activity habits develop early in life, the Dairy Council of California and the San Diego Chargers are teaming up to teach local youth to eat right and stay active with Fuel Up to Play 60.

Targeting elementary and middle school-aged children in San Diego and Orange counties, Fuel Up to Play 60 provides nutrition education and physical activity programs and incentives to students for free.  The programs focus on making smart choices about nutrition and activity, including "fueling up" with nutrient-rich foods such as low-fat and fat-free dairy foods, fruits, vegetables and whole grains, and "getting up to play" 60 minutes a day.

"Lifestyle habits - both good and bad - are typically formed at an early age," said Peggy Biltz, Dairy Council of California CEO.  "By providing comprehensive, grade-specific nutrition education programs and emphasizing physical fitness, Fuel Up to Play 60 will teach kids that eating right and staying active are important for their futures."

Beginning Oct. 15, 2009 and running through the 2009-2010 school year, teachers and administrators can enter to compete with other local public schools to win a variety of Charger prizes through eating nutritious foods, being active and participating in suggested in-school programs and activities.  Prizes include a school assembly with a Chargers player, autographed Chargers merchandise, Charger Girl visits and game tickets.

"It's important that kids understand the importance of good nutrition and exercise at an early age," said Chargers Executive Vice President A.G. Spanos.  "Fuel Up to Play 60's programs and incentives will  not only get kids excited about learning healthy lifestyle skills, but the overall program compliments our Chargers Champions program, which has already provided fitness and athletic equipment to deserving schools.  Our goal is to keep giving kids a reason to use the equipment and ultimately live healthier lives."

Public schools that enroll in Fuel Up to Play 60 receive grade-specific nutrition education programs developed by Dairy Council of California.  The programs teach students about eating a balanced diet and are based on the most current Dietary Guidelines for Americans and USDA's MyPyramid food guidance system.

These schools also receive a Fuel Up to Play 60 School Wellness Kits, which includes posters, banners, display cubes and more featuring San Diego Charger Kassim Osgood.  To receive nutrition education programs, Fuel Up to Play 60 materials and enter the competition, school representatives can call 866/572-1359 or visit http://www.dairycouncilofca.org/educators .

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Dairy Council of California develops nutrition education programs that promote making healthy choices from all the food groups and regular physical activity. For more information, please visit http://www.mealsmatter.org or http://www.dairycouncilofca.org. Healthy Eating Made Easier.

The San Diego Chargers and MTS are partnering this year to run a series of food drives starting Nov. 10 and ending with a game day food drive at the Chargers vs. Philadelphia game at Qualcomm Stadium Nov. 15.

Starting Tuesday, Nov. 10, MTS will host "Stuff the Bus Food Drives" at select Vons supermarket parking lots where the public will be invited to stuff an MTS bus full of food to feed hungry San Diegans over the holiday season.

The Chargers and MTS will officially launch the food drive at a press conference at Qualcomm Stadium, Gate C on Nov. 10 at 10:30 a.m. with Vincent Jackson, Supervisor Ron Roberts and Food Bank officials.

On Sunday, Nov. 15 the Chargers will host a game-day food drive at Qualcomm Stadium with the Food Bank's famous red food drive collection barrels at every stadium entrance.

The Food Bank is appealing to the community to support the food drives since it is currently feeding record numbers of San Diegans, and Food Bank officials say that this year's food drive is of critical importance. All food collected will help the Food Bank meet the exponential increase in demand, especially over the holiday season. 

Food drive locations include:

Tues., Nov. 10, 9:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. Vons 6555 Mission Gorge Road,  92120

Weds., Nov. 11, 9:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. Vons Balboa Avenue, 92111 

Thurs., Nov. 12, 9:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. Vons 3610 Adams Avenue, 92116

Fri., Nov.13, 9:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. Vons 665 Saturn Street, 92154

Sun. Nov. 15, 12 noon - 3 p.m. Qualcomm Stadium, Chargers vs. Philadelphia game

Metropolitan Transit System CEO Paul Jablonski says, "MTS is pleased to unite with the Chargers to once again help the community with a food drive.  Stuff the Bus has become an important tradition at MTS and we hope our combined efforts will help those in need."

The San Diego Food Bank cites its distribution statistics at the start of the food drive campaign that show double and triple-digit increases in demand from cities across the county.

The Food Bank's figures compare the amount of food it distributed during the first two quarters of 2008 with the same period this year.

From January to June, the amount of food distributed to the needy doubled and tripled in key cities across the county. The number of meals distributed by the Food Bank in the City of San Diego alone increased from 1.6 million to 2.4 million.

SDFB distribution increases Q1-Q2 2008 vs. Q1-Q2 2009

City % Increase
El Cajon 32%
Fallbrook 100%
Imperial Beach 202%
La Mesa 31%
Lemon Grove 144%
National City 13%
Oceanside 12%
San Diego 39%
San Ysidro 29%
Spring Valley 80%
Vista 86%

Based on the number of people enrolled on Food Bank programs and reports from its nonprofit partners, the number of people served by the Food Bank every month has increased from 200,000 to 304,000 from 2008 to 2009, an increase of 52%. 

Food Bank CEO J. Scofield Hage said: "We are so grateful to MTS and the Chargers for supporting the Food Bank with these important food drives. Getting more food donated to the Food Bank will be critical this year with demand soaring. We are feeding more people than ever before, but it is due to the help of organizations like MTS and the Chargers that we are able to meet the increased need."

For the tenth consecutive year, San Diego Chargers President Dean Spanos and the Chargers Champions community initiative have provided the largest privately-funded gift to support San Diego’s educational community.

With this year’s contribution of $200,000 in school grants and scholarships, the Spanos family has donated more than $3.75 million to San Diego’s schools and students through the Chargers Champions program.

The Chargers Champions program is committed to improving physical fitness in San Diego County schools by providing grants for new facilities and equipment.
“Schools throughout California are suffering from large budget cuts,” Spanos said.  “The main goal of our program is to provide students with the necessary means to living a healthy lifestyle through physical fitness.”

The educational grants provided in 2009 ranged from $70,000 to Castle Park High School to $9,000 given to Alpine Elementary.

Six San Diego-area schools received grants to improve their physical fitness, athletic or nutrition programs:

$70,000 Castle Park High School, San Diego: Weight room
$45,000 Mt. Empire High School, Pine Valley: Football, track, and basketball equipment
$30,000 Bay Park Elementary School, San Diego: Fitness area for visually impaired
$25,000 Tierra Del Sol Middle School, Lakeside: Fitness equipment and heart monitors
$15,000 Horton Elementary School, San Diego: Indoor fitness room and equipment
$9,000Alpine Elementary School, Alpine: Fitness equipment

This year’s recipients will be honored when the Chargers host the Oakland Raiders on Sunday, November 1 at Qualcomm Stadium.

Funds allocated to Chargers Champions are administered through the Chargers Community Foundation, the San Diego Chargers’ charitable foundation. The Foundation was established in 1995 by Dean and Alex Spanos to “help San Diego build on its strengths by supporting individuals, activities and organizations that work to make the city a better place to live.”

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