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June 18, 2003

FORMER PRESIDENT CLINTON HONORS SAMSUNG'S FOUR SEASONS OF HOPE AT GALA CHAMPIONS LUNCHEON

Former President Clinton Joins Magic Johnson, Joe Torre, Boomer Esiason at Samsung Event That Raises Over $200,000 To Aid The Athletes' Charities NY Mayor Bloomberg Proclaims June 18th "Four Seasons of Hope Day" in NYC

 

 

New York City, NY - Former President William Jefferson Clinton helped make it a true day of Hope in New York City as Samsung's Four Season's of Hope charity program celebrated its second year with a gala Champions luncheon honoring sports legends Magic Johnson, Joe Torre, Boomer Esiason, Arnold Palmer and their charity foundations, along with a host of other celebrities and dignitaries. Former New York City Mayor, Rudy Giuliani spoke at the event and New York City Sports Commissioner, Kenneth J. Podziba, kicked off the proceedings with a proclamation from New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg naming June 18th "Four Season's of Hope Day." The luncheon, which was hosted by TV's Bob Costas, raised over $200,000 to help improve the quality of life of children and their families who face major challenges.

Launched in 2002 by Samsung Electronics America, Samsung's Four Seasons of Hope is an innovative goodwill program dedicated to raising awareness and funds through national retail promotions with Best Buy, Radio Shack, Sears and CompUSA. In only one year, Samsung's Four Seasons of Hope program raised over $1 million for charity and has won recognition for it's achievements as a recipient of this year's Cause Marketing Halo Awards, being presented on June 19, 2003. The Four Seasons charities, which are endorsed (and in many cases founded) by the athletes themselves, include:

  • Magic Johnson & The Magic Johnson Foundation. Founded by Magic Johnson following his retirement from the NBA in 1991, the foundation aims to improve and serve the health, educational and social needs of children residing in inner-city communities. Under the aegis of "Samsung's Four Seasons of Hope," Samsung will support technology centers for inner-city youths, and fund scholarship programs and social and cultural programs.

  • Joe Torre & Joe Torre Safe At Home Foundation. In conjunction with Samsung's Four Seasons of Hope program, Joe Torre has launched a new charitable foundation dedicated to fund and develop educational programs that will end the cycle of domestic violence and save lives. Together with Samsung, the foundation has made both monetary and product donations to shelters in the New York area, and will now focus on educational programs.

  • Boomer Esiason & the Boomer Esiason Foundationto Benefit Cystic Fibrosis. Created by Boomer Esiason and his wife in 1993 after their son was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis, the foundation works to raise money to find a cure for the genetic disease. To date, more than $22 million has been raised for the cause. Samsung will donate money to the foundation during Super Bowl week.

  • Arnold Palmer & The Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children & Women. Located in Orlando, Florida, the hospital is the only hospital in the southeast -- and one of the few hospitals in the nation -- dedicated exclusively to serving the special needs of children and women. Samsung is providing a significant monetary donation as well as technology products such as computers and TVs to the children's hospital and the vision for a new women and infant's hospital.

    Four major national retailers joined "Samsung's Four Seasons of Hope" as retail partners and have helped the program so far raise over $1 million for the participating charities. The retailers -- Best Buy for the Magic Johnson Foundation, Sears for the Boomer Esiason Foundation, CompUSA for the Arnold Palmer Hospital For Children & Women, and Radio Shack for Joe Torre Safe at Home Foundation -- have encouraged their customers to donate to the program by offering special prizes such as a trip to the Super Bowl or a chance to have Magic Johnson coach their school basketball team for a day. The retailers tie special sales promotions to Samsung's Four Seasons of Hope that raise funds and help customers participate when they purchase specified products.

    Peter Weedfald, Senior Vice President, Strategic Marketing, Samsung Electronics America, Inc., explained, "Hope is such a priceless commodity these days, and Samsung - along with it's superstar athletes and retail partners - is proud to be making a real difference and giving hope back to children and families in the communities where we do business."

    Each athlete joined "Samsung's Four Seasons of Hope" program because of the unique, high-level national exposure the campaign offers their charities. In planning the program, Samsung sought out athletes that combine a proven on-field record with a commitment to local communities and charities.

    Boomer Esiason presented a historic donation worth over $2 million at today's luncheon to the Therapeutic Development Network Program, an innovative resource within the National Cystic Fibrosis Foundation for scientific research and drug development. "Contributions to our foundation from Samsung's Four Seasons of Hope program have helped fund vital science that gives our family and other cystic fibrosis families the hope that our children will out live us," said Esiason. "As we continue to face the obstacles created by a challenging economy, it is vital that charitable foundations like ours garner support from corporations that care not only about the bottom line, but also about making a difference in the lives of those in need."

    Magic Johnson expressed his enthusiasm with the program and all the ways it has helped the Magic Johnson Foundation's education and awareness efforts. "Samsung's Four Seasons of Hope program has already benefited the Magic Johnson Foundation in numerous ways, from supporting our scholarship program to bringing much needed technology products to the inner city," said Johnson. "It's great to be on a winning team that champions hope."

    Joe Torre explained how Samsung's program coincided with the launch of his foundation a year ago and the vital role that it has played. "Samsung was instrumental in launching our foundation, and with their help, we are going to fund and develop educational programs that will end the cycle of domestic violence and save lives," said Torre. "The Joe Torre Safe at Home Foundation is extremely proud and honored to be associated with Samsung's Four Seasons of Hope program. "

    Arnold Palmer, who was unable to attend the event and whose hospital for Children and Women received vital technology products from Samsung in addition to funds, added, "By sharing the vision for the hospital that my family and I have cared about so dearly, Four Seasons of Hope has made a difference in the lives of many children and families."

    For more information about Samsung's Four Seasons of Hope, please visit our website at www.fourseasonsofhope.com.

    About Samsung Electronics America, Inc.
    Headquartered in Ridgefield Park, NJ, Samsung Electronics America, Inc. (SEA), a wholly owned subsidiary of Samsung Electronics Co., markets a broad range of award-winning, advanced digital consumer electronics and information systems products. The SEA organization oversees the North American operations of Samsung Telecommunications USA, Samsung Electronics Canada and Samsung Electronics Mexico. Please visit www.samsungusa.com for more information.

    About Samsung Electronics
    Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. is a global leader in semiconductor, telecommunications, flat panel display and digital convergence technology. Samsung Electronics employs approximately 70,000 people in 87 offices across 47 countries. The company is the world's largest producer of memory chips, TFT-LCDs, CDMA mobile phones, monitors and VCRs. Samsung Electronics consists of four main business units: Digital Media Network, Device Solution Network, Telecommunications Network and Digital Appliance Network Businesses. The company web site is located at http://www.samsung.com.



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