The Conrad N. Hilton Foundation today announced nearly $24 million in grants to organizations focused on some of its key program areas.
LOS ANGELES, September 29, 2008. The Conrad N. Hilton Foundation today announced nearly $24 million in grants to organizations focused on some of its key program areas including blindness and trachoma prevention, early childhood education and development, safe water development and disaster relief and recovery.
“The Hilton Foundation supports organizations that are working to alleviate the suffering of the world’s most disadvantaged, with a special emphasis on children,” said Steven M. Hilton, president and chief executive officer of the Hilton Foundation.
Childhood blindness and trachoma prevention: The foundation awarded $10 million to The Carter Center in Atlanta, Georgia to help eliminate trachoma, the world’s leading cause of preventable blindness, in Mali, Niger and Ghana and implement a control program in two states of southern Sudan. Helen Keller International in New York City will receive $5.26 million to combat trachoma in Mali, Niger and Tanzania. The foundation is committing $5 million to the Perkins School for the Blind in Watertown, MA for continued support of the Hilton/Perkins international program which serves children who are deaf-blind or blind with multiple disabilities.
Early childhood education and development: The foundation has awarded a $500,000 capital campaign grant to Special Care Inc. in Oklahoma City, OK to expand facilities for educating children with special needs, as well as their families.
Safe water development: Himalayan Institute Hospital Trust in Uttaranchal, India will receive $650,000 towards the development of safe water and sanitation initiatives.
Disaster relief and recovery: United Way for the Greater New Orleans Area will receive $1.3 million to support the Bridge to Quality Program of the Greater New Orleans Child Care Rebuild Collaborative, a group of non-profits that are partnering to help rebuild child care facilities in the area. A grant of $900,000 went to Luftfahrt ohne Grenzen (Wings of Help) in Frankfurt, Germany, which supports humanitarian organizations worldwide through the coordination of air transport for rescue workers, supplies and patients.
Based in Los Angeles, the Hilton Foundation was created in 1944 by the late hotel entrepreneur and business leader, Conrad N. Hilton, who left his fortune to the foundation when he died in 1979 with instructions to help the most disadvantaged and vulnerable throughout the world without regard to religion, ethnicity or geography. Barron Hilton, who also led Hilton Hotels Corporation and is current chairman of the foundation, has joined his father in committing to leave the bulk of his wealth to the foundation. The foundation along with its related entities has assets exceeding $4.2 billion and, since its inception, has committed more than $780 million for charitable projects throughout the world.