PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (PwC) today announced that it is donating $1.55 million over the holiday season to help families and communities in need. The donation will be made directly to charitable organizations across the country to assist American families impacted by the prolonged recession and other socio-economic factors. PwC's donation is being made in lieu of organized holiday parties.

The donation builds on the $1.55 million that PwC contributed during the holidays last year to charitable organizations in more than 60 communities throughout the United States.

"As a firm, we are committed to making a difference for those less fortunate and who continue to face hardship through these challenging times," said Bob Moritz, U.S. Chairman and Senior Partner, PricewaterhouseCoopers. "We hope that our actions inspire others to give back to their communities not only during the holiday season but throughout the entire year."

PwC supports the community throughout the year, not just during the holidays. In their 2009 fiscal year, PwC and their partners and staff collectively donated nearly $30 million and more than 134,000 volunteer hours.

"When PwC decided last year to forgo internal holiday celebrations and instead to make donations to those who truly needed some extra support during the holiday season, we were overwhelmed by the positive response we got from our communities, but also by our people," said Shannon Schuyler, US corporate responsibility leader, PricewaterhouseCoopers. "The holiday season is traditionally a time for giving and that giving is even more special when it helps families get shelter and share a warm meal together or enables a homeless child to have a cherished toy. Our people feel that we are providing money but also hope as we head into the New Year."

The firm's holiday giving initiative arrives on the heels of the firm's annual Summer of Community Service, during which partners and staff led or participated in more than 200 community-based projects, volunteered more than 74,000 hours and impacted more than 97,000 children. In addition to the Summer of Community Service and other firm-sponsored projects, PwC grants all U.S. partners and staff 10 additional hours of paid time off for discretionary volunteerism.

PwC also recently launched its annual Project Make [it] count program. This unique, low-cost, scalable volunteer effort provides grants to selected partners and staff who represent each of the firm's major offices and who will implement an idea that supports the firm's four corporate responsibility goals for the marketplace, people, communities and the environment. Grantees use the seed money to implement a project around an issue or cause that is important to them in any of the four areas. Between November and December, they will put their ideas into action and capture the experiences through a journal or video, which will be broadly shared in the new year.

About PricewaterhouseCoopers
PricewaterhouseCoopers (www.pwc.com) provides industry-focused assurance, tax and advisory services to build public trust and enhance value for our clients and their stakeholders. More than 163,000 people in 151 countries across our network share their thinking, experience and solutions to develop fresh perspectives and practical advice.

"PricewaterhouseCoopers" refers to PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP or, as the context requires, the PricewaterhouseCoopers global network or other member firms of the network, each of which is a separate and independent legal entity.

© 2009 PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP. All rights reserved.

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PricewaterhouseCoopers

PwC firms provide industry-focused assurance, tax and advisory services to enhance value for their clients. More than 161,000 people in 154 countries in firms across the PwC network share their thinking, experience and solutions to develop fresh perspectives and practical advice. See pwc.com for more information.

© 2011 PwC. All rights reserved. "PwC" and "PwC US" refer to PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, a Delaware limited liability partnership, which is a member firm of PricewaterhouseCoopers International Limited, each member firm of which is a separate and independent legal entity.

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