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UAW International Union and GM Becomr National Make-A-Wish Partnership

27 August 1999

UAW International Union and General Motors Bring National Make-A-Wish Partnership to Western Pennsylvania

    PITTSBURGH, Aug. 26 -- The UAW International Union and
General Motors today brought its newly-formed national partnership with the
Make-A-Wish Foundation(R) to Western Pennsylvania by helping to grant a local
child's wish to have his 1980 Chevrolet truck restored.  Wish child, Bill Weil
from Aliquippa, Penn., is the first local child to benefit from the UAW-GM
commitment to the Make-A-Wish Foundation.
    To underscore their national three-year partnership announced in Detroit
in June by UAW Vice President Richard Shoemaker and GM Group Vice President
Gary L. Cowger, UAW, GM and Make-A-Wish representatives presented 17-year-old
Bill with his refurbished 1980 Chevy truck.  Bill bought the truck during his
treatments for leukemia and hoped to have it roadworthy by the first day of
school -- August 30, 1999 -- at Hopewell Senior High School.
    "This partnership is about children -- thousands of them -- whose wishes
will come true over the next three years because of the UAW-GM commitment,"
said Michele R. Atkins, president and CEO of the Make-A-Wish Foundation(R) of
Western Pennsylvania, adding the agreement represents the largest commitment
from a sponsor in foundation history.
    "Our UAW-GM commitment to the Make-A-Wish Foundation is consistent with
our common goals to improve the quality of life in communities across the
country and here in Western Pennsylvania," said Bob Thomas, UAW Local 544
president, and Daniel Welton, plant manager of the GM Metal Fabricating
Division Plant in West Mifflin.
    "The men and women of the UAW are proud to support the Make-A-Wish
Foundation, which serves the needs of very special children," said Thomas.
"Encouraging people to pursue their dreams helps to build strong workplaces,
families and communities, and that's important to UAW."
    "Our Pittsburgh plant has a long history of supporting the local chapter
of the Make-A-Wish Foundation.  This national partnership is another example
of UAW and General Motors working together for a common cause," said Welton.
"We have already seen, first hand, the effect the Make-A-Wish Foundation has
on our families, employees and community.  By launching a national
partnership, the UAW and GM will reach more children with special needs around
the country and in Western Pennsylvania."
    UAW-GM financial support will come from the UAW-GM Center for Human
Resources, which is jointly operated by the UAW International Union and
General Motors Corporation to develop and administer a wide variety of
education, training and retraining programs.  One of the most comprehensive of
these joint activities is the UAW-GM Work and Family Programs, focusing on
employee-assistance, child-care and elder-care services.
    Since 1984, the UAW and General Motors have committed more than $3 billion
toward education and training, making the UAW-GM Center for Human Resources
the largest privately funded educational institution in the world.
    The Make-A-Wish Foundation grants wishes to children with life-threatening
illnesses.  Through private donations and the efforts of 13,000 volunteers
nationwide, the foundation granted nearly 7,500 wishes last year and m ore
than 58,000 wishes since it was founded in 1980.  The local chapter, the Make-
A-Wish Foundation of Western Pennsylvania, was founded in 1983 and serves 33
counties in western Pennsylvania with field offices in Erie, Altoona and
Punxsutawney.  In 1998 the Foundation fulfilled 393 wishes.  Currently, the
Foundation is one of the most active chapters in the country and has fulfilled
more than 3,200 wishes.  For more information on how to refer children, please
call the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Western Pennsylvania at 1-800-676-WISH.