MLB to make $1 million donation to Stand Up To Cancer. MLB All-Star Charity Concert Presented by Pepsi to take place on July 11th under the St. Louis Gateway Arch.June 23, 2009 – Major League Baseball will host Missouri native and nine-time Grammy Award winner Sheryl Crow for the 2009 Major League Baseball All-Star Charity Concert presented by Pepsi on Saturday, July 11 under the iconic Gateway Arch at the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial. The concert, which will be free to fans, will feature a $1 million donation by Major League Baseball to Stand Up To Cancer. In addition, fans will be able to make donations to Stand Up To Cancer after the concert. The concert will be streamed live on MLB.com, the official website of Major League Baseball, and fans watching the live stream will be encouraged to donate to Stand Up To Cancer.
The 2009 Major League Baseball All-Star Charity Concert presented by Pepsi is part of a series of charitable events and activities leading up to the MLB All-Star Game. This year’s All-Star activities are focused on MLB and its business partners giving back to important charitable causes and celebrating the importance of community service. In addition to Pepsi, MLB sponsors Budweiser, Sharp and Taco Bell are also supporting this event. The concert will begin at 8:00 p.m. CT on Saturday, July 11. Prior to the concert, the St. Louis Cardinals vs. Chicago Cubs game on FOX will be aired live on big screen televisions at the concert location for fans to view. All visitors will be screened at security checkpoints before entering the Arch grounds. The following are prohibited: alcohol, glass containers, pets and bicycles. Major League Baseball has responded to United States of America President Barack Obama’s call for community service through “United We Serve,” a program which begins today to encourage all Americans to be part of building a new foundation for America by engaging in sustained and meaningful community service. The initiative will focus on four key areas: energy and the environment, health care, education, and community renewal. The concert will be an environmentally friendly event featuring the Major League Baseball Green Team, a group that will collect recyclable bottles and cans at the show. Pepsi and Aquafina are supplying more than 100 recycling bins that will be located around the Arch grounds. Major League Baseball has a relationship with the National Resources Defense Council (NRDC), who advises MLB on ways for the League and its Clubs to implement practices and policies that are environmentally-friendly.
“I am honored to team up with Major League Baseball to come home and perform a free show that will support Stand Up To Cancer, an organization with the noble and ambitious goal of eradicating all forms of cancer,” said Crow, a cancer survivor. “The dedication of Major League Baseball to being a part of the environmental movement gives me the chance to put on a show while supporting two causes that I feel strongly about.”
“Sheryl Crow is a wonderful performer who deserves enormous credit for using her fame to shine a light on causes that are important to the health and welfare of our country,” said Baseball Commissioner Allan H. (Bud) Selig. “As a social institution, Major League Baseball will use this concert and the All-Star festivities to entertain our fans while recognizing the importance of addressing important social needs, and we thank Pepsi for making this great event happen.”
“All of us at Stand Up To Cancer are very grateful to Sheryl Crow and Major League Baseball, for their dedication and support in the fight against cancer,” said Sue Schwartz, member of the Stand Up to Cancer Executive Leadership Council. “We are thrilled to have a tremendous platform like the All-Star Game to invigorate and activate the public in the fight against this vicious disease.”
“Pepsi is fortunate to have the opportunity to merge two of America’s favorite pastimes—baseball and music—into one event,” said Jeff Dubiel, VP of Sports Marketing, Pepsi-Cola North America Beverages. “By teaming up with Major League Baseball and Sheryl Crow, we’re not only giving fans an amazing show, but we’re raising awareness and funding for an important cause—Stand Up To Cancer.” Free-spirited, fearless and fierce, Sheryl Crow has garnered nine Grammys, performed duets with musical luminaries such as Sting and Mick Jagger, released seven studio albums which sold more than 35 million records worldwide, and launched her very own clothing line Bootheel Trading Co., is a cancer survivor and passionate humanitarian and has performed for President Obama. From humble beginnings as a jingle and back-up singer, Crow has reached the pinnacle of professional solo success. Crow explores both personal and global issues on her most recent LP, Detours (produced by Bill Bottrell, who last worked with Crow on her 1993 debut, the seven-times platinum Tuesday Night Music Club). In the span of just a year, Stand Up To Cancer raised more than $100 million due in large part to a historic hour-long program simultaneously broadcast on ABC, CBS and NBC, September 5, 2008. In May 2009, SU2C announced its first funding of more than $73 million to five dream team collaborations comprised of more than 38 principal investigators from over 20 leading institutions, with 337 individuals participating in total.
Women&Cancer magazine (www.womenandcancermag.com), the leading print and online resource for women and families affected by a cancer diagnosis, will be on hand at the MLB All-Star Charity Concert offering magazines and information. Women&Cancer is proud to support Stand Up To Cancer and Major League Baseball. Each quarterly issue of Women&Cancer offers breaking news about treatment, insightful articles devoted to emotional, spiritual, and wellness issues, and inspiring stories of survivorship.
About 2009 Major League Baseball All-Star Game
The 80th Major League Baseball All-Star Game will be played on Tuesday, July 14th in St. Louis and will feature the best of the American League taking on the top players of the National League. Major League Baseball has responded to United States of America President Barack Obama’s call for community service through “United We Serve,” a program which encourages Americans to engage in sustained and meaningful community service. Building up to the excitement of the All-Star Game, Major League Baseball will conduct a wide variety of special events and charitable activities for fans both inside and outside of Busch Stadium. At the ballpark, the events will include Taco Bell All-Star Sunday on Sunday, July 12th featuring the XM All-Star Futures Game and the Taco Bell All-Star Legends & Celebrity Softball Game, and Gatorade All-Star Workout Day on Monday, July 13th featuring the State Farm Home Run Derby. Outside of the ballpark, fans will have an opportunity to experience All-Star Summer through a variety of special events including Major League Baseball All-Star FanFest, the five-day interactive fan festival; the MLB All-Star Charity Concert presented by Pepsi benefiting Stand Up To Cancer, a free concert for fans under The Gateway Arch; the All-Star Charity 5K & Fun Run presented by Sports Authority and Nike, a charity run on a baseball-themed route to benefit three cancer organizations; and the All-Star Game Red Carpet Show presented by Chevy, a free parade of All-Stars leading into Busch Stadium. The Midsummer Classic will be televised nationally on FOX Sports and will be shown around the world by Major League Baseball International. For more information about 2009 All-Star Summer, visit www.allstargame.com.
About Pepsi-Cola North America Beverages
Pepsi-Cola North America Beverages (www.pepsi.com), based in Purchase, N.Y., is PepsiCo’s refreshment beverage unit in the United States and Canada. Its U.S. trademarks include Pepsi, Mountain Dew, Sierra Mist, Mug, Aquafina, SoBe and IZZE. The company also makes and markets Tropicana juice drinks, Dole and Ocean Spray single-serve juices and North America’s bestselling ready-to-drink iced teas and coffees, respectively, via joint ventures with Lipton and Starbucks. For more information, please visit www.pepsiproductfacts.com.
About Stand Up To Cancer
Stand Up To Cancer (SU2C) is a program of the Entertainment Industry Foundation (EIF) and was established by a group of media, entertainment and philanthropic leaders whose lives have been affected by cancer in significant ways. The group includes Katie Couric; the Entertainment Industry Foundation, represented by Board of Directors Chairperson Sherry Lansing (Founder of the Sherry Lansing Foundation), CEO Lisa Paulsen and Vice President Kathleen Lobb; Laura Ziskin, the Noreen Fraser Foundation and its executive, Noreen Fraser; Rusty Robertson and Sue Schwartz of the Robertson Schwartz Agency; and nonprofit executive Ellen Ziffren. Both Ziskin and Fraser are cancer survivors.
SU2C’s Dream Team approach to funding translational cancer research is designed to bring together the best and brightest scientists from different disciplines at research centers across the country and internationally who will work collaboratively to quickly address today’s critical problems in patient care. Monies will also be used to support innovative cancer research projects, which are often deemed “too risky” by conventional funding sources. As a partner in SU2C, the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR), led by a prestigious SU2C Scientific Advisory Committee, provides scientific oversight, expert review of the research projects, and grants administration.
About United We Serve
United We Serve is an extended call to service by President Obama challenging all Americans to help lay a new foundation for growth in this country by engaging in sustained, meaningful community service. The United We Serve summer service initiative begins June 22nd and runs through the National Day of Service and Remembrance on September 11th. The initiative will be led by the Corporation for National and Community Service, the federal agency dedicated to fostering service in communities across the country, and will focus on four key areas: energy and the environment; health care; education; and community renewal. President Obama is encouraging Americans to visit the Corporation’s website, www.serve.gov, to find service opportunities near them, post their projects and tell their friends and neighbors what they’re working on.
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Contact: Jeff Heckelman or Lauren Verrusio, Major League Baseball, (212) 931-7878