Partners & Friends

Tom Ryan

President and Chief Executive Officer
CVS Caremark

Tom Ryan
Running, jumping, swimming, riding a bike -- most kids take these activities for granted, but many children with disabilities are faced with obstacles that prevent them from enjoying some of life’s simple pleasures. Two years ago, CVS Caremark President and CEO Tom Ryan announced a landmark program that would not only channel the company’s philanthropic dollars, but would unite its more than 190,000 associates around a single cause and improve the quality of life for children across the United States.

CVS Caremark All Kids Can, the company’s five-year, $25 million commitment to making life easier for children with disabilities and their families, harnesses the full financial power of the company’s charitable giving to support causes related to children with physical and developmental disabilities. There is also a full complement of related volunteer opportunities in which associates can participate.

“Children have always been at the heart of our charitable giving,” says Ryan. “We’re proud that CVS Caremark All Kids Can helps children with disabilities learn, play and succeed in life.”

As an All Kids Can partner organization, Easter Seals has benefited from generous program grants. The funding has provided support for innovative programming throughout the country, which has improved the lives of hundreds of children with disabilities.

In 2006, CVS Caremark also became the national premier sponsor for Easter Seals Walk With Me. Since then, CVS Caremark associates and their teams have raised awareness and funding dollars, with a total of nearly $400,000 in 2006, and projected totals for 2007 of more than $650,000.

Although the CVS Caremark philanthropic focus is on children with disabilities, a variety of supplemental community programs are in place. For example, CVS Caremark Community Grants help support enhanced health care services, improved approaches to education, and healthier communities in which to live. Through the CVS Caremark Volunteer Challenge Grant program, annual grants are awarded to the non-profit agencies that its colleagues support through their volunteer time and efforts.

CVS Caremark has become recognized as a paragon of community service and philanthropy, so it’s no wonder that PR News honored CVS Caremark All Kids Can as a model for corporate social responsibility this year.

The company was also honored with the 2007 Optimas Award for Partnership for its commitment to hiring people with disabilities and older adults. Through these efforts, CVS Caremark has created much-needed employment opportunities for people with disabilities and older workers who want to be economically self-sufficient and contribute to their communities.

Ryan attributes these successes to his organization’s strong service-oriented culture. “At CVS Caremark, corporate giving and community involvement are integral parts of how we do business,” he says. “We are tremendously proud of the impact we are making in our communities.”