December 6, 2007

It’s all about the kids!

Six Bay Area CEOs write checks totaling $188,000 for underprivileged children
at the Family Giving Tree’s annual CEO Shopping Challenge

Jen-Hsun Huang, CEO of NVIDIA Corp., grabs Barbie toys off the shelf during the Family Giving Tree’s annual CEO Shopping Challenge on Nov. 30 at the Target store in the San Jose Market Center. The event saw six Silicon Valley CEOs spend $188,000 of their own money for low-income children in the greater Bay Area.

Six Bay Area CEOs raced feverishly through the aisles of the Target store at the San Jose Market Center on Nov. 30, trying to beat the 25-minute clock and filling numerous shopping carts with toys while also helping local underprivileged children during the Family Giving Tree’s annual CEO Shopping Challenge.

All told, the CEOs--Ed Colligan (Palm, Inc.), Bo Ewald (Silicon Graphics), Brian Halla (National Semiconductor Corp.), Jen-Hsun Huang (NVIDIA Corp.), Sanjay Mehrotra (SanDisk) and Tom Steipp (Symmetricom, Inc.)-- spent $188,000 of their own money on toys and clothing for low-income children who are served through the Family Giving Tree’s Holiday Program.

“The kindness and generosity of these six CEOs cannot be overstated,” says Family Giving Tree’s Queen Elf, Jennifer Cullenbine. “Because of them there will be thousands of children in the greater Bay Area who will have a happy holiday season this year because of a gift they will receive from the CEO Shopping Challenge. I’d like to thank each of them for their incredible compassion and a willingness to help those in need during what should be a joyous time of the year.”

The Family Giving Tree’s Holiday Program is currently in its 18th year and will serve more than 70,000 local low-income children from more than 250 agencies. The children’s wishes are then fulfilled through the generosity of more than 900 companies that host a Giving Tree during the holiday season, including National Semiconductor Corp., NVIDIA Corp., Palm, Inc., SanDisk, Silicon Graphics and Symmetricom, Inc.