RB Employees Lead First “Get Ready, Get Safe” Prep Rally at Newark Elementary School with Charity Partner Save the Children

As part of RB’s recently launched “Get Ready, Get Safe” national partnership with charity partner Save the Children, the global health and hygiene company known for popular brands such as Mucinex® and Lysol® led its first Prep Rally for 240 students at the Louise A. Spencer Elementary School in Newark, NJ, on November 1, 2016. The event marks the first organized and led by a group of more than 20 RB employees who are based at the company’s Parsippany, NJ, headquarters. Children in grades K-5 participated in the Prep Rally, which featured fun games and activities designed to teach the children about the basics of disaster preparedness, including how to identify themselves and communicate in an emergency, how to create an In Case of Emergency (ICE) card, and what to pack in a disaster supplies kit.

The “Get Ready, Get Safe” program is a pioneering initiative designed by Save the Children to help communities prepare to protect and care for the most vulnerable among us in times of crisis – our children. As part of an employee engagement program unique to the United States, RB enables employees to participate in the “Get Ready, Get Safe” program by going out into the communities in which they live and work to educate children, parents, teachers and families about disaster preparedness using pre-developed materials and exercises from Save the Children.

“Seeing the amazing work that Save the Children does around the world is an inspiration,” said Hannah Boothroyd, Senior Brand Manager at RB North America. “It was exciting to organize the very first RB/Save the Children event that could directly benefit children here in the United States. The kids learned so much about disaster preparedness in just one day – it was incredibly rewarding to see them so engaged.”

RB was connected to the school via Schools That Can (STC) Newark, a nonprofit organization which aims to expand quality urban education through building partnerships that directly impact student achievement. Executive Director Erin Sweeney was delighted to see the program in action. “We at STC are always looking for new partners whose programs we believe will expose Newark's youth to new ideas, critical thinking, and life skills. It is clear this program does just that and we are grateful that the students at Louise A. Spencer, a STC Newark school, could benefit from it.”

For nearly 100 years, Save the Children has been on the front lines of emergency and humanitarian responses around the world. During disasters such as Hurricane Sandy and, most recently, the devastating flooding in Louisiana, Mississippi, and the Carolinas, Save the Children was there to provide meals, supplies and child-friendly spaces, along with ongoing support to address emotional recovery and future preparedness.

RB employees across the country will continue to support the “Get Ready, Get Safe” initiative by reaching out to their local communities to offer disaster preparedness training developed by Save the Children for schools and other organizations. To request a “Get Ready, Get Safe” educational event at your school or
business, contact Suzanne.Grogan@RB.com. For Save the Children resources on disaster preparedness or to donate, visit www.savethechildren.org/GetReady.

About the RB and Save the Children Partnership
RB (formerly known as Reckitt Benckiser) has been a corporate partner of Save the Children since 2003. Since then, the company has raised over $35 million that has helped more than 1.5 million children around the world. As a long-time partner of Save the Children, RB’s global initiatives worldwide support “Save a Child Every Minute,” a joint program created to eliminate child mortality related to poor sanitation and hygiene. In the United States, funds raised go specifically to support the “Get Ready, Get Safe” program which provides training and easy-to-use tools for families, schools and communities to ensure emergency resources are in place before crisis strikes.