BOSTON - The Gillette Company (NYSE:G) today named seven Boston-area social service organizations as the first grant recipients in a program that will provide $800,000 this year to prevent homelessness in Boston.

Grants totaling $400,000 from the Gillette FaceForward Homelessness Prevention Program were awarded to the seven organizations to help more than 500 Greater Boston families keep their homes. The funding also will help resolve the longer-term issues that caused the families to seek assistance.

At an event today, beneficiaries of these organizations spoke about their experiences on the brink of homelessness and how programs aimed at preventing homelessness have helped them. Among those speaking was Markeithia Silver, a police officer with the Boston Police Department. She described how the Metropolitan Boston Housing Partnership helped her to turn her life around after she lost her home when she fell behind on rent payments after being diagnosed with breast cancer.

Also speaking were Lydia and Ronald Clapp, who 20 years ago opened their hearts and home to a four-year-old severely disabled child, Mark, whom they adopted. They recently lost their home when a series of medical and financial crises depleted their life savings, leaving them evicted and facing life on the street. Their 10-month fight against homelessness was won when Project Hope stepped in to provide the temporary support they needed.

Gillette Vice President of Civic Affairs Cathleen Chizauskas said, "Gillette has supported efforts to provide emergency shelter since 2002, but - as important as those efforts are - we recognize that managing homelessness won't end homelessness. Preventing homelessness is the best way to end homelessness. By helping more than 500 Boston-area families keep their homes, the Gillette FaceForward Homelessness Prevention Program will save these families the anguish, disruption and loss that homelessness creates."

On a typical night in Boston, more than 6,000 men, women and children are cared for by the city's shelter system. Seven in 10 homeless people are employed, and many of them could have avoided becoming homeless had they been provided with assistance sooner.

In addition to directly benefiting hundreds of families who risk losing their homes, the Gillette FaceForward homelessness prevention grants could yield a significant savings for taxpayers. It is estimated that maintaining a family in a shelter for the six months it typically takes them to move back into housing costs $21,150 per family. By enabling more than 500 families to keep their homes, the Gillette FaceForward Homelessness Prevention Program could save state and local government millions of dollars in shelter and transition costs.

The funding also will provide up to 4,000 days of foster care for children who otherwise would "age out" of the foster care system when they turn 18, keeping them from becoming homeless while they make the transition to an independent life.

The $400,000 awarded today in the program's initial cycle of grants was the result of submissions made in response to a request for proposals issued earlier this year seeking applications from organizations working to prevent homelessness in the Greater Boston area. Grants were presented today to Dare Family Services, Project Hope (Little Sisters of the Assumption), Victory Programs, HomeStart, Metropolitan Boston Housing Partnership, Massachusetts Coalition for the Homeless and The Salvation Army.

"Ending the cycle of homelessness will enhance the quality of life not only for those who suffer from this problem, but also for their neighbors in Boston's communities," added Chizauskas. "It's crucial that we seek to help the most vulnerable among us find the housing, services and other assistance they need to live safe, secure lives."

Gillette will provide a total of $800,000 during 2005 to homelessness prevention programs in the Greater Boston area. The remaining $400,000 in Gillette FaceForward Homelessness Prevention Program grants will be awarded later this year, following a second round of solicitations scheduled for July.

In 2002, Gillette identified housing and emergency shelter as a strategic area of focus for its corporate charitable giving programs. The Company has assisted a variety of organizations that provide housing assistance, including the Pine Street Inn and Rosie's Place in Boston and Casa do Menor in Brazil.

In addition to housing and emergency shelter, Gillette's overall philanthropic program is focused on economic education and on prevention and wellness programs related to women's and prostate cancers. During 2004, Gillette provided assistance worldwide to 150 organizations through $6.6 million in direct grants and $10 million in product donations.

About The Gillette Company
Headquartered in Boston, The Gillette Company is the world leader in male grooming, a category that includes blades, razors and shaving preparations. Gillette also holds the number one position worldwide in selected female grooming products, such as wet shaving products and hair epilation devices. In addition, the Company is the world leader in alkaline batteries and manual and power toothbrushes.

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