CIGNA Corporation today named Steve Silverman, founder of Challenger
Baseball in Cherry Hill, N.J., as the company’s
2007 Volunteer of the Year. Silverman, a food services specialist at
CIGNA, developed the first non-competitive organized recreational
activity for children with special needs and disabilities in his
hometown.
“While excellent programs like the Special
Olympics exist, they are of a more competitive nature. Challenger
Baseball is strictly recreational and inclusive of all disabilities,”
Silverman said. “As children age, the gap
between the special needs child and other children widens, particularly
where sports are concerned. For many special needs children, being part
of a team activity helps to fulfill a need to be an equal to their peers
in the community.”
The program began three years ago. Since then, Silverman and a team of
dedicated volunteers have widened dugouts to make them available to
wheelchairs and added safety bars and wheelchair ramps to restroom
facilities at the playing fields. More than 150 children ages 5 to 18
take part in Challenger Baseball.
“CIGNA is proud to recognize Steve, who not
only demonstrates the best of the volunteer sprit, but exemplifies our
commitment to understanding and appreciating the diversity of all people
we serve within our communities. We are grateful to Steve as a volunteer
and a CIGNA employee,” said H. Edward Hanway,
CIGNA's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, who will host a special
recognition luncheon for Silverman at CIGNA May 12.
The Points of Light Foundation, founded by former President George H.W.
Bush, selected Silverman as CIGNA's Volunteer of the Year. The
Foundation's mission is to promote corporate volunteerism and is used as
an independent decision-maker to choose CIGNA's Volunteer of the Year.
As CIGNA Volunteer of the Year, Silverman will receive a $2,500 check
from CIGNA and a $2,500 grant from the CIGNA Foundation will go directly
to Challenger Baseball.
CIGNA’s Community Caring
For a quarter century, CIGNA has helped to sustain health and well-being
in communities through its Community Caring volunteer recognition awards
program. The Community Caring Awards recognize outstanding community
service and provide employees with the opportunity to receive a grant
for their non-profit volunteer organization through the CIGNA
Foundation. A CIGNA volunteer is recognized each month, with one
volunteer chosen to receive the CIGNA Volunteer of the Year award. In
2007, CIGNA employees collectively logged 18,000 hours in volunteer time
with non-profit organizations through Community Caring and other
CIGNA-backed activities.
CIGNA (NYSE:CI) provides employers with benefits, expertise and
services that improve the health, well-being and productivity of their
employees. With approximately 47 million covered lives in the United
States and around the world, CIGNA's operating subsidiaries offer a full
portfolio of medical, dental, behavioral health, pharmacy and vision
care benefits and group life, accident and disability insurance. www.cigna.com
CIGNA Foundation, Inc. is a private foundation funded by
contributions from CIGNA Corporation and its subsidiaries. The CIGNA
Foundation supports organizations sharing its commitment to enhancing
the health of individuals and families, and the well-being of their
communities, with a special focus on those communities where CIGNA
employees live and work.
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