NFL and United Way Encourage Fans Nationwide to Lend a Hand Through 32nd Season of Public Service Ads

NFL and United Way Encourage Fans Nationwide to Lend a Hand Through 32nd Season of Public Service Ads

Hasselbeck, Tomlinson, Lynch and Others Star in New NFL/United Way National TV Spots

NEW YORK, Aug. 31 /PRNewswire/ -- United Way of America (UWA) and the National Football League (NFL) today announced the launch of Lend a Hand, a new public service advertising campaign for the 2005 season. The ad campaign, which will debut during the kickoff of the regular NFL season on September 8th, will air on ABC, CBS, FOX and ESPN to an audience of more than 120 million people weekly.

Over more than three decades, the series has featured nearly 1,000 players and coaches spots and is the longest-running charitable collaboration of its kind. This year, the NFL and United Way have taken the campaign in a new direction by seizing the opportunity to inspire action on an individual level. Developed and produced pro bono by the New York-based advertising agency, Gotham, Inc., each PSA conveys the message that the problems facing America's communities are too large to be solved by one person alone and asks the viewer for help.

In this series of seven ads, each NFL player attempts to tackle one of many issues that United Ways are facing in communities across America -- issues like homelessness, infant nutrition and teen mentoring. Featured players include: KEITH BROOKING of the Atlanta Falcons, JAY FEELY of the New York Giants, TARIK GLENN of the Indianapolis Colts, MATT HASSELBECK of the Seattle Seahawks, JOHN LYNCH of the Denver Broncos, RICHARD SEYMOUR of the New England Patriots and LADAINIAN TOMLINSON of the San Diego Chargers.

"This campaign resonates because it's focused on something every one of us can do -- give back to our local community," stated BRIAN A. GALLAGHER, President and CEO of United Way of America. "It's only if we work together to make a collective impact that we will be able to solve the many challenges that confront our nation. We're proud to partner with the NFL for another year to raise awareness and encourage volunteerism by mobilizing the caring power of communities," Gallagher continued.

By emphasizing the theme of collective action in the spots, United Way and the NFL hope to motivate others to do more. For the first time, the spots direct viewers to United Way's web site -- unitedway.org -- to learn more about volunteer opportunities in their respective communities.

"Our teams and players have given back to their communities for decades," said NFL Commissioner PAUL TAGLIABUE. "We're proud to help United Way raise awareness about the importance of getting involved in the community each year."

The NFL furnishes the airtime at no cost to United Way and all NFL players appearing in the ads are volunteers. Since the NFL and United Way combined forces, resources to United Way have grown from $800 million to more than $4 billion annually to strengthen local communities across America.

More information:

About United Way of America

United Way of America is the national organization dedicated to leading the United Way movement in making a measurable impact in every community across America by focusing on the root causes of the most serious problems. The United Way movement includes approximately 1,350 community-based United Way organizations. Each is independent, separately incorporated, and governed by local volunteers. For more information about United Way of America, please visit: http://www.unitedway.org/.

Source: United Way of America

CONTACT: Sheila Consaul of United Way of America, +1-703-683-7871, sheila.consaul@unitedway.org, or Adina Ellis of NFL, +1-212-450-2435, or adina.ellis@nfl.com

Web site: http://www.unitedway.org/

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