07/17/2013

Capitol Center for the Arts named Citizens Bank 2013 Champion in Action

Citizens to provide $35,000 grant, PR and volunteer support

Manchster, N.H. (July 18, 2013) – Citizens Bank has named the Capitol Center for the Arts in Concord, a 2013 Champion in Action®. Through this initiative, the Capitol Center for the Arts will receive a $35,000 grant from the Citizens Bank Foundation along with extensive marketing and volunteer support.

The Capitol Center for the Arts is dedicated to bringing outstanding artists and audiences together, fostering experiences that educate, entertain and strengthen community bonds. As the largest nonprofit performing arts center in New Hampshire with 1,300 seats, the Capitol Center for the Arts welcomes nearly 80,000 patrons to more than 170 performances and events each year.

“The Capitol Center for the Arts is much more than a performing arts facility – it is a cherished community resource and the cultural heart of Concord,” said Joe Carelli, President of Citizens Bank and RBS Citizens, New Hampshire. “Since the historic theater was restored and re-opened in 1995, it has helped bring vibrancy to the city, delighted audiences, offered educational experiences for children and families, provided a venue for community events and bolstered local businesses. Its efforts not only enrich our community culturally, they also add to the region’s economic vitality.”

The Champions in Action program is part of Citizens Helping Citizens Strengthen Communities, the bank’s program designed to enhance quality of life and economic vitality in local communities. Launched in 2002 to recognize, support and promote nonprofit organizations for their contributions to New Hampshire communities, the program has awarded 48 local nonprofits with more than $1 million in grants and promotional support.

The Capitol Center is being recognized for its accomplishments serving the community, which include:

  • Providing curriculum-based educational programs that reach more than 15,000 school children each year;
  • Donating more than 1,200 tickets annually through social service agencies, allowing disadvantaged children and families opportunities to experience live performances;
  • Collaborating with local organizations, including RB Productions and the New Hampshire Music Festival, to increase access to the arts and strengthen the creative economy in the state; and
  • Helping drive economic activity and spurring redevelopment in the South Main Street neighborhood of Concord.

According to data from a statewide survey conducted by Americans for the Arts, the Capitol Center for the Arts and its audiences has created more than $2.4 million in total economic activity and supported the equivalent of 93 full-time jobs.

“Being recognized as a Champion in Action is a significant boost, one that will enable us to explore potential new programs and services. This generous grant will help us continue to attract, engage and entertain audiences from around the state,” said Nicolette Clarke, Executive Director for the Capitol Center for the Arts. “We are grateful to Citizens Bank for this endorsement of our mission and programs.”

As a Champion in Action, the Capitol Center will receive:

  • $35,000 in unrestricted funds from the Citizens Bank Foundation;
  • The opportunity for the organization’s executive director to participate in a “president-to-president” mentorship with Citizens Bank and RBS Citizens, New Hampshire President Joe Carelli;
  • Volunteer support from Citizens Bank colleagues;
  • Promotional support highlighting the Champion in Action in all Citizens Bank branch DCN screens and on its ATMs and website;
  • Extensive public relations support;

For more information about the Citizens Bank Champions in Action program, visit www.citizensbank.com/community/champions. To learn more about the Capitol Center for the Arts, visit http://www.ccanh.com.

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

About Citizens Helping Citizens
Grounded in the belief that a good bank gives back to its community and to the people who live there, Citizens Helping Citizens is a program embracing the community goals of RBS Citizens Financial Group, Inc. – the commercial bank holding company serving consumer and small business customers as Citizens Bank and Charter One and commercial banking customers as RBS Citizens. The Citizens Helping Citizens program comprises five key initiatives supported directly by RBSCFG and also by its nonprofit charitable foundations, the Citizens Charitable Foundation, the Citizens Bank Foundation and the Charter One Foundation: Citizens Helping Citizens Fight Hunger, Citizens Helping Citizens Provide Shelter, Citizens Helping Citizens Strengthen Communities (economic development), Citizens Helping Citizens Teach Money Management (financial education) and Citizens Helping Citizens Give (volunteerism and colleague charitable donations). Across all of these initiatives, Citizens Helping Citizens strives to enhance quality of life and economic vitality in local communities.

About Citizens Bank
Citizens Bank is a division of RBS Citizens, N.A., operating its seven-state branch network in Connecticut, Delaware, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island and Vermont. It has 80 branches and 202 ATMs in New Hampshire.

RBS Citizens, N.A., is a subsidiary of RBS Citizens Financial Group, Inc., a $126 billion commercial bank holding company. It is headquartered in Providence, R.I., and through its subsidiaries has approximately 1,400 branches, approximately 3,600 ATMs and approximately 19,000 colleagues. Its two bank subsidiaries are RBS Citizens, N.A., and Citizens Bank of Pennsylvania. They operate a 12-state branch network under the Citizens Bank brand in Connecticut, Delaware, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Vermont; and the Charter One brand in Illinois, Michigan and Ohio. RBSCFG has non-branch retail and commercial offices in more than 30 states. RBSCFG is owned by RBS (the Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc). RBSCFG’s website is citizensbank.com.