Ashanti and Mario Lopez Host “Million Meal Summer” Event at Variety Boys & Girls Club;
Celebs Talk with Kids about Healthy Eating and Exercise

LOS ANGELES – August 28, 2009 – Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) alumni Ashanti (Grammy Award-winning singer/songwriter, actress) and Mario Lopez (host of Extra) today hosted a community event at the Variety Boys & Girls Club in Los Angeles. The event was a part BGCA’s “Million Meal Summer” initiative, an effort funded by the Morgan Stanley Foundation to provide needed meals this summer to young people nationwide and to educate them on the importance of healthy eating.

The two celebrities talked with Club members about the importance of eating healthy and the impact it has on their academic performance, plus how critical regular exercise and increased physical activity is to their overall well being.

While millions of kids have access to meal programs during the school year, access becomes much more limited in the summer. Faced with the current economic challenges, many families are struggling to provide their children with healthy meals.

“Every summer, nearly 15 million school children in this country will go without the lunchtime meals provided to them during the school year,” said John J. Mack, Chairman and CEO of Morgan Stanley. “The reason we are doing this is quite simple. Faced with the current economic challenges, many families are struggling to provide their children with healthy meals. It is part of our Firm’s culture to act when we learn that one out of six children in the U.S. will not be getting enough to eat.”

By the Numbers (Source “BGCA/Morgan Stanley Million Meal Summer” survey of 800 kids):

• Kids favorite summer foods: Pizza (23%), Ice cream (21%), Fruits (17%), Burgers (14%).
• 57% take part in free or reduced cost school lunch programs during the school year.
• More than 64% expect to be eating at their local Boys & Girls Club at least once a day.
• Home-cooked meals are most common during the summer (56%), fast food (34%), restaurants (9%).

Statistics on Youth and Eating:

• During the school year, more than half of the 31 million children who participate in the National School Lunch Program are low-income.
• Last year, the Department of Agriculture’s Summer Food Service Program for Children (SFSP) provided nearly 130 million meals to 2.1 million children across the country.
• The SFSP program reimburses organizations for meals served, but often does not cover the infrastructure or programming costs organizations incur when operating a summer program for children.

“We are extremely grateful to the Morgan Stanley Foundation for their generous support that will ensure the young people we serve this summer will not go hungry,” said Roxanne Spillett, president and CEO, Boys & Girls Clubs of America. “The economic downturn that has impacted the entire country has been deeply felt by our Clubs, and many summer food programs have been placed in jeopardy. Hopefully others will follow Morgan Stanley’s lead.”

About the Million Meal Summer Program
In an effort to feed the millions of young people expected to miss meals or go hungry this summer, Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) launched a partnership with Boys & Girls Clubs of America to provide meals for Club members. Through a donation from the Morgan Stanley Foundation to BGCA, the “Million Meal Summer” program is dispensing more than one million wholesome, free meals and snacks to children this summer who typically receive subsidized meals during the school year.

About Boys & Girls Clubs of America
For more than 100 years, Boys & Girls Clubs of America (www.bgca.org) has helped kids "Be Great," providing hope and opportunity for those who need it most.  Today, more than 4,300 Clubs serve some 4.5 million young people through Club membership and community outreach.  Known as The Positive Place for Kids, Boys & Girls Clubs can be found throughout the country and on U.S. military bases worldwide, providing young people 6-18 years old with guidance-oriented character development programs conducted by trained, professional staff. Clubs positively impact lives and help young people reach their full potential as productive, caring citizens.  Key programs emphasize leadership development; education and career exploration; community service; technology training; financial literacy; health and life skills; the arts; sports, fitness and recreation; and family outreach. In a recent Harris Survey of Club alumni, 57 percent said the Club saved their lives.  National headquarters are located in Atlanta.

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