| Mitsubishi Electric Breaks Ground
on Hawthorn Center Project to Assist Kids
Northville Township, Mich., May 17, 2003 — Mitsubishi
Electric Automotive America (MEAA) today broke ground on its “Five
Senses” volunteer garden project to benefit the children at Hawthorn
Center, a psychiatric hospital in Northville, Michigan.
Hawthorn Center is Michigan’s only remaining state-owned
children’s psychiatric hospital serving children with psychiatric
disorders. The Center’s 80 residents range in age from 5 to 17
years.
MEAA’s PEACE (Proving Excellence and Caring Exist) Committee has
been working with Hawthorn Center to develop this multi-year project
since the fall, 2001, when clean up of a neglected garden space
began. Garden plans were developed by the Committee in January,
2002.
The purpose of the garden is to create a space the children can
enjoy, stimulate their five senses (hence the name), and provide an
environment for outside classroom instruction. It will include
shade, raised herb, and evergreen gardens, a Japanese meditation
space, and hummingbird/butterfly and flower gardens. Paths and
seating will be added.
Says Keith Williams, Hawthorn childcare worker, “The children
really enjoyed planting seeds, watching them grow and picking the
items that grew. The garden is assisting them in more ways than
purely educational ones.”
MEAA anticipates spending over 100 employee and family member
man-hours by the time the project is completed. The garden is
designed to be self-sustaining with maintenance responsibilities
taken over by Hawthorn Center this fall.
“It’s certainly been exciting seeing interest being taken in this
garden again,” says Dave Dent, Hawthorn physical plant supervisor.
“MEAA’s efforts are appreciated by all of us here, the staff and
students alike.”
About the Mitsubishi Electric America Fund
Mitsubishi Electric Automotive America donates money yearly and
encourages and supports employees and family members to contribute
their time and talents to activities sponsored by the PEACE
committee and the Mitsubishi Electric America Foundation (MEAF). For
the last 12 years, MEAF has championed MEAA’s commitment to
improving the quality of life in our society, especially for young
people with disabilities. On both the local and national levels, the
Foundation supports programs that truly make a difference.
To make MEAA employees' contributions go even further, MEAF
supplements donations through the Starfish Match and Matching Grant
programs. To learn more about these programs, visit www.meaf.org. In
the case of the Garden Project, MEAF donated money to Hawthorn
Center for every MEAA man-hour spent on the project. These funds
were used by Hawthorn Center to purchase and deliver plant material,
seating and glider materials, maintenance, etc.
About the PEACE Committee
PEACE is the name given to MEAA’s volunteer community service
group. It stands for Proving Excellence and Caring Exist.
The PEACE Committee is composed of 15 employees who organize
MEAA’s philanthropic efforts. In addition to Hawthorn Center, the
PEACE Committee is working with the following by donation and time:
Cooke School, Northville, Mich.
Penrickton Center for Blind Children, Taylor, Mich.
Arc Cycling, a program that helps disabled individuals become
competent cyclists, Westland, Mich.
Burger Annex School, Garden City, Mich.
Capuchin Soup Kitchen, Detroit, Mich.
Past projects include raising funds for U.S. troops overseas,
donations of stuffed animals to Penrickton Center for Blind
Children, and restoration of the Hawthorn Center Children’s Library,
for which MEAA received national recognition from MEAF, in the form
of its Starfish Enterprise Award. The Starfish Award is given
annually to the best volunteer project organized by employees of a
Mitsubishi Electric U.S. company.
About Mitsubishi Electric Automotive America
Mitsubishi Electric Automotive America, a U.S. subsidiary of
Mitsubishi Electric Corporation, was established in 1979 in response
to the continued growth of the North American automotive business,
particularly for electronics. MEAA offers all aspects of
engineering, manufacturing, sales and marketing, distribution and
service of electrical and electronic systems and components for
automobile manufacturers and industrial engine manufacturers. MEAA
has close to $650 million in annual sales and 900 employees in North
America. For more information about Mitsubishi Electric Automotive
America, visit http://www.meaa-mea.com/news/www.meaa-mea.com. |
