PORTLAND, Ore. – With the school year just around the corner, Coca-Cola Refreshments and the Portland Timbers of Major League Soccer have partnered with Portland Safe Routes to School to get kids excited about walking and riding bikes to school. Coca-Cola and the Timbers awarded $50,000 to Portland Bureau of Transportation's Safe Routes to School program to enhance efforts to teach students how to safely navigate their neighborhood on foot or by bicycle. The donation is a part of continued efforts by Coca-Cola and the Portland Timbers to promote a cleaner environment and encourage kids in our communities to become more active.
To celebrate the partnership between Safe Routes to School, Coca-Cola Refreshments and the Portland Timbers, 35 students from the Safe Routes program will ride their bikes to JELD-WEN Field and attend Tuesday's soccer match against Argentina's Independiente. At halftime, the students will join mascot Timber Joey and representatives from Coca-Cola and the Timbers to present the $50,000 check to Portland City Commissioner Randy Leonard and Portland Bureau of Transportation Director Tom Miller.
The $50,000 donation supports Safe Routes to School's pedestrian and bicycle safety education programs at more than 80 elementary schools throughout the city. These programs provide Portland youth with hands-on instruction in how to safely navigate their neighborhoods on foot or by bike. Safe Routes to School will teach more than 5,000 students this coming school year.
The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE: KO) is the world's largest beverage company, refreshing consumers with more than 500 sparkling and still brands. Led by Coca-Cola, the world's most valuable brand, the Company's portfolio features 15 billion dollar brands including Diet Coke, Fanta, Sprite, Coca-Cola Zero, vitaminwater, Powerade, Minute Maid, Simply and Georgia. Globally, we are the No. 1 provider of sparkling beverages, juices and juice drinks and ready-to-drink teas and coffees. Through the world's largest beverage distribution system, consumers in more than 200 countries enjoy the Company's beverages at a rate of 1.7 billion servings a day. With an enduring commitment to building sustainable communities, our Company is focused on initiatives that reduce our environmental footprint, support active, healthy living, create a safe, inclusive work environment for our associates, and enhance the economic development of the communities where we operate. For more information about our Company, please visit our website at www.thecoca-colacompany.com.
Safes Routes to School works to make bicycling and walking to and from school a safe, healthy alternative for children and their families. Program staff engage with school communities to encourage active transportation, teach safe bicycling and walking skills and build safer streets through traffic engineering. SR2S is a federal program that is locally managed by the Portland Bureau of Transportation. More information is available at www.saferoutesportland.org.