CURRAN TO GIVE $148,884 TO CENTER FOR POVERTY SOLUTIONS

Attorney General J. Joseph Curran, Jr., announced today that he will be presenting a check for $148,884 to the Center for Poverty Solutions on Wednesday, May 11 at 10:00 a.m. at 2521 N. Charles Street, in Baltimore.

The money comes from a 2003 settlement of a lawsuit alleging an illegal resale price maintenance scheme, a form of price-fixing, by Salton, Inc., the maker of George Foreman Grills. Maryland, along with 45 other states and territories, alleged that Salton artificially inflated the prices for the George Foreman Grills by preventing retailers from discounting the Grills and by excluding rivals from the marketplace. In May 2003, the federal district court approved a $8 million national settlement.

The Center for Poverty Solutions provides support and technical assistance to soup kitchens, food pantries, food banks and school pantries, providing meals and groceries to more than 84,000 needy people every month throughout the State. In addition, the Center for Poverty Solutions operates several innovative food and nutrition-related programs that promote a healthy, productive, and stable lifestyle for its participants.

The $148,844 grant will be used to support and expand the following Center for Poverty Solutions programs: the School Pantry Program, which uses food to reward parents for volunteering in their neighborhood schools; the Edible School Yards Program, which uses space on or near school grounds for students and parents to grow fruits and vegetables; the Super Pantry Program, which combines traditional food relief with life skills classes, self-esteem facilitation, and nutrition and cooking classes; and the Summer Food Hotline, which provides food insecure families with referral information to allow them to access emergency feeding sites in their communities during the summer.

“ I am pleased to present these settlement funds to this excellent organization,” Attorney General Curran said. “The Center for Poverty Solutions is making a difference in the community, and I am proud to support their efforts.”

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