WAITT FAMILY FOUNDATION DONATES $100,000 TO RED CROSS
IN SUPPORT OF NYC AND WASHINGTON, D.C. RELIEF EFFORTS

San Diego, CA- September 12, 2001 -The Waitt Family Foundation has made an emergency donation of $100,000 to the American Red Cross in response to the tragic events that occurred yesterday in New York City and near Washington D.C.

"While there will be literally hundreds of relief organizations involved in this emergency effort, we believe that the American Red Cross is positioned to provide the most immediate and efficient help to the disaster victims, their families, and the severely impacted communities of Washington and New York," said John Heubusch, foundation president. "At the Waitt Family Foundation, our hearts go out to the friends and families left behind by those who perished. Like most Americans, we are eager to do something, anything, in the aftermath of this tragedy to comfort the afflicted," he added.

Heubusch noted that there are rays of hope in the aftermath of a very dark
Sept. 11.

"As it has before, disasters often bring out the best in people, and there is abundant evidence in the way ordinary Americans reacted to the tragedy, and the way others are now pulling together and celebrating a patriotic bond," he said. "Let us all hope we can channel these feelings into actions that will quickly reinstall a sense of national safety, security and well-being for all Americans.

"And let's hope that in the weeks and months ahead, those feelings of oneness continue so that we may build the kind of national community in the future in which we all aspire to belong. At the Waitt Family Foundation, we believe that every child and family should have the opportunity to choose their own futures and succeed in fulfilling their dreams. If the capacity for human compassion that has been exhibited this week is any indication, we have never been as close to reaching this goal," Heubusch concluded.

In addition to their financial donation, The Waitt Family Foundation has donated 10 desktop computers to the San Diego chapter of the American Red Cross to assist in their management of local blood donations.