PLS, Western Union Foundation Contribute to Communities in Schools–Dallas

Chicago, IL (PRWEB) January 07, 2012

“Giving at-risk students the academic and social support they need to succeed in school is an outstanding investment in our future,” said Bob Wolfberg, President, PLS. “That’s the mission of Communities in Schools—Dallas, and we’re very pleased to support their efforts with a $5,000 donation.”

Communities in Schools Dallas Region, Inc., helps at-risk students stay in school, complete their education and graduate to become productive members of their communities. CISDR offers an array of programs and charter schools designed to assist students who have not succeeded in a traditional learning environment.

PLS (http://www.PLShome.com) operates more than 300 financial services centers in nine states. The PLS mission is to provide innovative and convenient financial services delivered with the respect that hard-working consumers deserve.

“Communities in Schools ensures that every student gets the opportunity to achieve to his or her potential,” noted Wolfberg. “We’re proud to support their important work. And to double the impact of our donation, we reached out to our friends at the Western Union Foundation.”

The Western Union Foundation’s (http://www.westernunionfoundation.org) “Agent Giving Circles” program assists Western Union Agents in supporting their local communities. PLS received dollar-for-dollar matching funds for its contribution to CISDR, for a combined total of $10,000.

“We’re well aware of PLS’s participation in—and contributions to—the Dallas community,” said Rob Koewler, Director of Strategic Accounts for Western Union. “When they told us about Communities in Schools—Dallas, we were delighted to match their donation.”

“CISDR is proud and grateful to count PLS and the Western Union Foundation among its partners in helping students at risk of academic failure stay in school, achieve and graduate to become productive and contributing members of our communities,” said Sandra G. Chavarria, President and CEO, Communities in Schools Dallas Region, Inc.

“Given the challenging economic environment, this kind of community engagement is invaluable,” continued Chavarria. “This support helps CISDR to change the trajectory of lives, ensuring that struggling schoolchildren living in poverty and in at-risk environments have the opportunity to succeed in school and in life.”

About PLS: People. Location. Service.

The PLS Group, headquartered in Chicago, is comprised of more than 300 financial services centers in Alabama, Arizona, California, Illinois, Indiana, Mississippi, New York, Texas and Wisconsin, with more than 3,100 employees. PLS is one of the largest, fastest-growing and most distinguished organizations in the check cashing industry, and is a top performer for Western Union, a money transfer network.

PLS has been listed among Inc. magazine’s “5000 Fastest-Growing Private Companies in America” (http://www.inc.com/inc5000/list) for the past three years, and for three consecutive years has been named one of the “101 Best and Brightest Companies to Work for in Chicago” by the National Association for Business Resources (http://www.101bestandbrightest.com). For the past four years, PLS has been named one of Chicago’s Largest Privately Held Companies by Crain’s Chicago Business® (http://www.chicagobusiness.com), and was listed among Crain’s “Fast 50” (Fastest Growing Companies). Bob and Dan Wolfberg, PLS Presidents, were finalists for Ernst & Young’s 2010 Entrepreneur of the Year Award (http://www.ey.com). In 2011, Bob Wolfberg was recognized by Financial Service Centers of America [FiSCA (http://www.fisca.org)] as its Financial Service Provider of the Year. The company has also been twice honored with the Activa Award from FiSCA in recognition of its charitable efforts.

The PLS Group serves customers through its PLS Check Cashers stores, which offer check cashing, prepaid Visa® debit cards, money transfer services, money orders and bill payments; PLS Loan Store locations, which provide consumer short-term loans, auto insurance and tax-preparation services; and PLS Motor Vehicle Services facilities, which offer vehicle license and registration services.

About Communities in School Dallas Region, Inc.

Communities In Schools Dallas Region, Inc. (CISDR) is a non-profit organization founded in 1985 to address the growing number of high school dropouts in Dallas and surrounding areas. As experts in collaboration and in providing comprehensive case-managed services, CISDR’s professional staff brings community resources into schools to work in the interest of at-risk children in a coordinated, caring and cost-effective way. CISDR operates in 66 schools in ten school districts in five counties. For more information, visit http://www.cisdallas.org

About Western Union

The Western Union Company is a leader in global payment services. Together with its Vigo, Orlandi Valuta, Pago Facil and Western Union Business Solutions branded payment services, Western Union provides consumers and businesses with fast, reliable and convenient ways to send and receive money around the world, to send payments and to purchase money orders. The Western Union, Vigo and Orlandi Valuta branded services are offered through a combined network of approximately 485,000 agent locations in 200 countries and territories. In 2010, The Western Union Company completed 214 million consumer-to-consumer transactions worldwide, moving $76 billion of principal between consumers, and 405 million business payments. For more information, visit http://www.westernunion.com

About the Western Union Foundation

Through Western Union’s Our World, Our Family® signature program, the Western Union Foundation supports initiatives to empower people through access to economic opportunity. Recognized by the Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy in 2009, the program is a five-year, $50 million commitment reflecting efforts made by Western Union employees, agents and partners around the world. Since its inception, the Western Union Foundation has awarded more than $73.8 million in grants to more than 2033 nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) in 120 countries and territories. To learn more, visit http://www.westernunionfoundation.org

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