ESA Foundation donates $75,000 to hurricane relief fund

The ESA Foundation, the charity operated by the US videogames industry trade body the Entertainment Software Association, has announced that it has made a donation of $75,000 to Save the Children's Gulf Coast hurricane relief and recovery efforts.

The money will be used to help Save the Children's work in Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi, the three states which were hardest hit by last year's hurricanes, and comes as this year's hurricane season begins - with June 1st marking the official start of the period.

Among the projects being run by Save the Children in these areas are child care centres and summer camps focusing on educational achievement, literacy, arts, sports and, on a very practical level, hurricane preparedness.

"We are proud to give Save the Children this gift to help rebuild the lives of children impacted by last year's hurricanes," commented ESA boss Doug Lowenstein. "The devastation caused by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita was the worst America has seen. Children of these disasters deserve a safe environment in which they can recover physically, emotionally and spiritually and begin to thrive once again."

Founded in early 2000 with the objective of fundraising within the videogames industry to support youth projects and charities in America, the ESA Foundation has so far raised over $6.7 million in grants supporting a range of youth-related charity causes.

Its main fundraising event each year is the Nite to Unite - For Kids, a charity dinner and auction which has been running since 1998.