- Grant Awarded as Part of Foundation's "30 Years of Giving" Celebration

WESTPORT, Connecticut, July 10, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- SeriousFun Children's Network is pleased to be the recipient of a $1.5 million grant from Newman's Own Foundation, the independent foundation created by the late Paul Newman.

Newman's Own Foundation made the award to SeriousFun Children's Network, formerly The Association of Hole in the Wall Camps, as part of an initial round of grants totaling $10 million that the organization is making to kick-off its "30 Years of Giving" celebration, recognizing the 30th anniversary of the founding of Newman's Own. The Foundation has committed to giving a total of $30 million to charity in 2012, a milestone that represents the largest amount of money Newman's Own Foundation has donated in a single year.

"As a longstanding supporter of SeriousFun Children's Network, Newman's Own Foundation has played an essential role in the growth and sustainability of our global organization," said John C. Read, President and CEO of SeriousFun Children's Network. "Our camps are independently managed and financed in part because Newman's Own Foundation has challenged us to become self-sustaining. Their funding, while small in comparison to the need, has been critical to our continued growth. Ultimately it is the children and their families who are the beneficiaries of Paul Newman's dream and the Foundation's generosity."

SeriousFun Children's Network, which changed its name in April 2012, is a growing community of independently managed and financed camps and partnership programs that have come together with a common purpose – to provide life-changing experiences to children with serious illnesses and their families around the world. The funds are to support the organization's name change, which will help it to reach and impact more children worldwide by unifying the network of camps and programs, and elevating its global mission.

Newman's Own Foundation is focused on helping Children with Life-Limited Conditions, one of the four "high impact areas" to which the Foundation will make significant contributions in this 30th anniversary year. The other areas include Nutrition, Empowerment, and Encouraging Philanthropy.

"Thirty years ago, Paul went against conventional wisdom by creating all-natural food products and giving 100% of the profits to charity," said Robert H. Forrester, President and CEO of Newman's Own Foundation. "Early on, someone asked Paul whether a company that gives all of its profits away could survive. Thirty years later, Newman's Own has not only survived, but grown and, as a result, helped thousands of organizations make a difference in the lives of others. We are proud to award SeriousFun Children's Network with this grant knowing that it will be used to make the world a better place."

Since Paul Newman founded his food company, Newman's Own, Inc., in 1982, Newman and Newman's Own Foundation have donated more than $350 million to thousands of charities worldwide. Newman established the Foundation in 2005, as a means of continuing his pledge to donate to charity all net profits and royalties from the sale of Newman's Own products.

SeriousFun Children's Network is a growing global community of independently managed and financed camps and partnership programs that have come together with a common purpose – to provide life-changing experiences to children with serious illnesses and their families around the world. Since 1988, more than 384,700 children and their families have been served, including over 253,800 children from 50 countries. Today, SeriousFun Children's Network includes 28 initiatives worldwide, all reaching beyond illness to help children and their families discover joy, confidence and a new world of possibilities. SeriousFun Children's Network and each of its member camps are independent not-for-profit organizations dependent upon private funding and the generosity of others to serve all children free of charge.  To support SeriousFun, visit www.seriousfunnetwork.org.

Media Contact:

Debra Kroszner
Associate Director of Communications
SeriousFun Children's Network
dkroszner@seriousfunnetwork.org
+1-203-571-0696

SOURCE SeriousFun Children's Network