|
May 22, 2006
NAPERVILLE – More than 1,000 Nicor employees, families and friends celebrated a decade of volunteerism during the company’s 10th Anniversary of Volunteer Day on Saturday, May 20 by completing 22 community service projects in communities throughout northern Illinois. Projects ranged from sorting food at local pantries to cleaning yards and planting flowers at senior citizens’ homes.
“Over the past ten years, because of our employees’ dedication and community pride, the commitment to volunteerism has grown at Nicor. This year’s anniversary celebration was a tribute to the Company’s mission statement of contributing to the well-being of our communities and the hope that our pledge to volunteerism continues to inspire others to make the same commitment,” said Russ Strobel, President, CEO and Chairman Nicor Inc. and Nicor Gas.
Volunteer Day at Nicor is an annual celebration of the company’s year-round commitment to communities. The company contributed more than $1.7 million to philanthropic efforts throughout Northern Illinois in 2005, and Nicor employees contributed financially but also donated their time to worthy causes throughout the year.
Volunteers completed projects in 20 northern Illinois communities:
Aurora – Volunteers sorted and organized food donations at Loaves and Fishes, 2707 North Eola Road.
Batavia – Volunteers helped clean up the Fox River on Route 25 by Clark Island and Skate Park.
Bloomington –Volunteers completed outdoor maintenance projects at various senior citizen homes on Wood Street near Miller Park.
Brookfield – Volunteers tamed vegetation by removing unwanted plants from the zoo grounds and constructed behavior enrichment objects for animals at Brookfield Zoo, 3300 Golf Road.
Capron – Sorting, organizing and packaging food donations keep volunteers busy at Boone County Food Pantry, 200 South Fifth Street.
Cicero - The Arthur E. Mac Quilkin Boys & Girls Club, located at 5500 W. 25th Street, was revitalized as volunteers revived the facility with a fresh coat of paint.
DeKalb – Volunteers sorted and organized food donations at the Salvation Army Food Pantry, 830 Grove Street.
Joliet – At the Victory Center, located at 29-31 N. Broadway, volunteers were busy installing energy efficiency kits, planting flowers and assisting with bingo games.
Kankakee – It was the great outdoors for this group of volunteers. They completed maintenance tasks which included gardening, mulching and landscaping at several senior citizen’s Kankakee homes.
Lisle – Volunteers sprung into action and removed unwanted vegetation at the Morton Arboretum on Illinois Route 53.
Mt. Prospect – The Greater Wheeling Area Youth Center, located at 550 East Business Center Drive, benefited from volunteers who updated the center with a fresh coat of paint.
Naperville – Volunteers performed a variety of tasks in Naperville including spring clean-up, building maintenance, gardening and other groundskeeping duties at DuPage Children’s Museum, 301 N. Washington Street; Conservation Foundation’s McDonald Farm, 10S404 Knoch Knolls Road; and Senior Home Sharing, 214 N. Eagle Street.
Palos Heights – At Lake Katherine volunteers dove into action and completed clean up projects at 7402 Lake Katherine Drive.
Riverdale – Volunteers spread out along an entire block in Riverdale to conduct outdoor maintenance and energy improvements at several homes on School Street.
Rockford – Volunteers sorted, organized and packed food donations at the Rock River Valley Food Pantry, 1080 Short Elm Street.
Sycamore – Volunteer gave to the Pay It Forward House at 719 Somonauk Street by conducting building maintenance and outdoor cleanup.
Woodridge – Volunteers sorted and organized food donations at the Woodridge Food Panty, 6809 Hobson Valley Drive, Suite 118.
Woodstock – Volunteers did gardening and landscaping at the Hearthstone Manor, 920 N. Seminary Avenue.
Worth – Volunteers completed spring cleaning and flower planting efforts along some parts of Harlem Avenue to Ridgeland Road.
Yorkville – Volunteers helped clean up at the Fox River Park and Recreation Center, 301 E. Hydraulic Drive.
Nicor Inc. (NYSE: GAS) is a holding company and is a member of the Standard and Poor’s 500 Index. Its principal businesses are Nicor Gas, one of the nation’s largest natural gas distribution companies, and Tropical Shipping, a containerized shipping business serving the Caribbean region and the Bahamas. Nicor also owns and has an equity interest in several energy-related businesses. For more information, visit the Nicor Web site at www.nicor.com.
Nicor Gas is one of the largest gas distribution companies in the nation and has provided safe, reliable and cost-effective natural gas service for more than 50 years. Nicor serves more than two million customers in a service territory that encompasses most of Northern Illinois, excluding the City of Chicago. For more information on Nicor Gas, visit www.nicorgas.com. | 
