Summary of Main Street’s Charitable Contributions for 2021
Main Street is a dedicated proponent of supporting local charitable and non-profit organizations. As stated in the CSR Strategy, Main Street supports specific charities based on the feedback from our employees. This support takes the form of both of monetary donations, our employees' time and talents through unique "Main Street team projects" and the utilization of our Volunteer Time Off program. Main Street is pleased to have continued its ongoing support and relationships with Ronald McDonald (https://rmhhouston.org/), Friends for Life (https://friends4life.org/), Star of Hope (https://www.sohmission.org/) and Child Advocates (https://www.childadvocates.org/) this past year.
For 2021, Main Street committed to donating $15,000 to each of our five charities in recognition of our 15th year anniversary since our Initial Public Offering in 2007. This is $5,000 more than the $10,000 we have committed to each charity in the past. In addition to our support for these charities, we also made significant monetary and time contributions to assist the Veterans Affairs Hospital in November in recognition of Veterans Day. We are very pleased that we were able to contribute a combined total of $105,680 from Main Street and employees to local charities in 2021. Please see the summary below for a recap on how we were able to support each charity this past year.
Child Advocates - A total contribution of $27,500 (including a combination of Main Street donations of $15,000 and donations from Main Street employees of $12,500)
- In May 2021, we participated in the Child Advocates Pull for Kids Classic event. Main Street and our employees supported the charity by participating in raffles, bidding on silent auction items and providing monetary donations of $7,000. In addition to the donations, 6 Main Street employees supported the event by participating in the sporting clays tournament.
- In December 2021, Main Street sponsored and organized a toy drive for the Child Advocates Santa's Wish List at our corporate offices where our employees collected new and unwrapped toys. Main Street was able to provide Christmas gifts to over 50 children and provide a total monetary donation of $10,500 to Child Advocates. In addition to the donation drive, 10 Main Street employees also volunteered their time over two days to help Child Advocates setup and organize for the Santa’s Wish List Program as a part of Main Street’s VTO Program.
- Main Street made an additional $10,000 donation to support Child Advocates and their services to Houston's most severely abused children.
- In addition to the monetary donations, Main Street also supported Child Advocates through the New York Stock Exchange “NYSE”. For 2021, the NYSE asked listed companies to share their efforts to help those in need and raise awareness for the many important organizations supported by the NYSE Community. Main Street and Child Advocates were honored, along with other NYSE listed company charities, with commemorative custom ornaments hung on the holiday tree in front of the NYSE Building in New York.
Friends for Life – A total contribution of $18,000 (including a combination of Main Street donations of $15,000, donations from employees of $3,000, and the requested donated items)
- Throughout the month of March, Main Street employees coordinated a drive within the company to collect essential items needed by the organization. In order to encourage employees to donate, Main Street also organized a special day where employees could bring their pet, enjoy a snack, and drop off supplies. The team came together and was able to provide over 130 items to help the shelter. Additionally, Main Street collected over $13,000 in monetary contributions from Main Street and its employees.
- Main Street made an additional $5,000 donation to support Friends for Life in their mission to innovative, improve and track results to find the most effective ways to save animal lives.
Houston Arboretum - A total contribution of $15,000 from Main Street
- Main Street donated $15,000 to the Houston Arboretum to support their role in protecting native plants and animals in the heart of the city where development threatens their survival.
Ronald McDonald House - A total contribution of $15,980 (including a combination of Main Street donations of $15,000 and donations from Main Street employees of $980)
- In December 2021, Main Street was a sponsor and participant in the 12th annual Trafigura Run for the third year in a row. Main Street supported the run by contributing a monetary donation of around $6,000. In addition to the donation, Main Street had 11 participants on the Main Street Capital Team who participated in the event, showing their support by running the race.
- Main Street made an additional $10,000 donation to provide 400 overnight stays to children and their families while a child is receiving medical treatment.
Star of Hope - A total contribution of $15,000 (including a combination of Main Street donations of $15,000 and significant donations of the school supplies requested by Star of Hope)
- Throughout the month of July, Main Street sponsored and organized a back-to-school drive at our corporate offices. The team came together and was able to provide over 142 of the most requested items.
- In October 2021, Main Street donated $5,000 to Star of Hope’s annual golf tournament which is their largest fundraiser of the year.
- Main Street made an additional $10,000 donation to support Star of Hope’s dedication to meeting the needs of homeless men, women, and their children.
Veteran’s Affair Hospital - A total contribution of $7,000 (including a combination of a Main Street donation of $5,000 and a donation from employees of items with a value of ~$2,000)
- For Veteran’s Day, Main Street organized a drive at our corporate offices where our employees put together care packages for the VA hospital patients. Main Street and its employees contributed over $7,000 in monetary donations which allowed our team to shop for needed supplies requested from the VA hospital. Main Street was able to provide a care package to over 50 veterans and active-duty service members. In addition to the donation drive, employees also volunteered their time to help sort supplies, package and deliver the care packages to the VA Hospital as a part of Main Street’s VTO Program.
Various Donations & Matching – A total contribution of $7,200 was made to other non-profit organizations in our community
- As a reminder Main Street has a Matching Donation program in place. Our matching program matches individual employee contributions on a dollar-for-dollar basis starting at a minimum employee contribution of $100 up to a maximum of $1,000 per employee per calendar year. For 2021, Main Street employees donated $3,600 to a charity of their choice and Main Street matched their donations bringing our total donations to $7,200.
Education – A total contribution of 206,500 was made to the scholarship program in 2021
- In addition to the charitable giving, Main Street also established a scholarship program in 2017 to provide educational opportunities to children of Main Street Capital and a select group of Main Street Capital’s portfolio companies. Main Street has successfully increased the scope of the program each year. In 2021, $206,500 of new and renewable scholarships were funded, bringing the program lifetime total to over $700,000 in scholarships to over 75 students.