Citizens Bank, WPXI-TV, and Trib Total Media now accepting applications for Champions in Action program

PITTSBURGH - Citizens Bank, WPXI-TV, and Trib Total Media are now accepting applications for the second Champions in Action of 2017, this time in the Violence Prevention category. The Champions in Action® program provides financial, volunteer and public relations support to local nonprofits.

Nonprofit organizations focused on addressing underlying conditions that contribute to violence in our communities are invited to apply for the Champions award to be announced in July 2017. Applications can be completed online at http://www.citizensbank.com/community/champions and must be submitted by Friday, Feb. 24 at 5 p.m. EDT.

Champions in Action is part of Citizens Helping Citizens Strengthen Communities, the bank’s program designed to enhance quality of life and economic vitality in local communities. It provides support for small nonprofit organizations to recognize their contributions to communities throughout Pennsylvania.

The selected Champion in Action will receive:

• a $35,000 contribution in unrestricted funds from Citizens Bank;
• media coverage from WPXI-TV, and Trib Total Media, including public service announcements and television profiles over the course of six months;
• volunteer support from Citizens Bank, WPXI-TV and Trib Total Media colleagues as well as from Pittsburgh Cares;
• the opportunity for the organization’s executive director to participate in an “Executive-to-Executive” mentorship with a Citizens Bank executive;
• public relations support;
• promotional support highlighting the Champion in Action in Citizens Bank branches;
• exposure on the Citizens Bank, WPXI-TV and Trib Total Media websites.

To be eligible for consideration, an organization must:

• Be a Pennsylvania-based nonprofit organization that serves Greater Pittsburgh and addresses the designated social concern;
• Provide verification of tax-exempt status under section 501(c)3 of the Internal Revenue Code; and
• Have a total operating budget of $5 million or less.

Citizens Helping Citizens Strengthen Communities is part of the bank’s broader Citizens Helping Citizens program addressing four key areas: hunger, strengthening communities, financial education and volunteerism. Get more information about Citizens Bank’s community initiatives online.

About Citizens Financial Group, Inc.

Citizens Financial Group, Inc. is one of the nation’s oldest and largest financial institutions, with $149.5 billion in assets as of December 31, 2016. Headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island, Citizens offers a broad range of retail and commercial banking products and services to individuals, small businesses, middle-market companies, large corporations and institutions. In Consumer Banking, Citizens helps its retail customers “bank better” with mobile and online banking, a 24/7 customer contact center and the convenience of approximately 3,200 ATMs and approximately 1,200 Citizens Bank branches in 11 states in the New England, Mid-Atlantic and Midwest regions. Citizens also provides wealth management, mortgage lending, auto lending, student lending and commercial banking services in select markets nationwide. In Commercial Banking, Citizens offers corporate, institutional and not-for-profit clients a full range of wholesale banking products and services including lending and deposits, capital markets, treasury services, foreign exchange and interest hedging, leasing and asset finance, specialty finance and trade finance.

Citizens operates through its subsidiaries Citizens Bank, N.A., and Citizens Bank of Pennsylvania as Citizens Bank, Citizens Commercial Banking and Citizens One. Additional information about Citizens and its full line of products and services can be found at www.citizensbank.com.

About WPXI-TV

WPXI is the Cox Media Group TV station in the Pittsburgh television market. Cox Media Group is an integrated broadcasting, publishing, direct marketing and digital media company that includes the national advertising rep firms of Cox Reps. Additionally, CMG owns and operates Valpak, one of North America’s leading direct marketing companies. The company operations include 15 broadcast television stations and one local cable channel, 86 radio stations, eight daily newspapers and more than a dozen non-daily publications, and more than 100 digital services. CMG operates in more than 30 media markets and reaches approximately 52 million Americans weekly, including 30 million TV viewers, more than 4 million print and online newspaper readers, and 18 million radio listeners. WPXI-TV’s website is wpxi.com.

About Trib Total Media

Trib Total Media is a multimedia network of daily and weekly newspapers, weekly shoppers, and websites delivering news, information and advertising to over 1.2 million readers across Western Pennsylvania every week. Trib Total Media’s targeted direct mail, promotional products, commercial printing, media planning and digital services deliver a variety of marketing solutions for advertisers big and small. In addition, Trib Total Media has formed strategic partnerships with community and non-profit organizations across the region, enabling Trib Total Media to conTRIBute and make a positive impact in the communities they serve. Visit TribTotalMedia.com and discover how we do things right. Here.

About Pittsburgh Cares

Founded in 1992, the mission of Pittsburgh Cares is to maximize the impact of our nonprofit partners and to advance a culture of volunteerism and civic engagement in the Pittsburgh region. Firmly believing that the collective efforts of volunteers can transform an entire city, we provide opportunities for adults, youth, businesses, and nonprofit organizations to connect and serve together to address pressing social needs. As the largest volunteer agency in the Pittsburgh region, Pittsburgh Cares offers more than 20,000 volunteer positions each year. We offer a free public resource that connects the general public to hundreds of one-time and skills-based service projects per month. We also constantly strive to offer programs that strategically maximize volunteer time and provide high-quality service experiences, moving Pittsburgh closer to the day when everyone is inspired and equipped to be the change they wish to see in the world.