Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Office Depot drops foundation, plans a new group
A community foundation that has been known as the Office Depot Foundation has changed its name to Listen Learn Care Foundation and is no longer receiving financial support from the Boca Raton office-supplies retailer.
Launched by Office Depot Foundation more than 20 years ago to provide disaster relief, the foundation has been known for giving thousands of backpacks with school supplies to children, and running community events such as a women’s leadership symposium and the Boca Raton Chamber of Commerce’s Diamond awards, which honor women who have achieved success in their fields.
“Current leadership at Office Depot has decided that Office Depot will no longer be a donor of the foundation,” said Leon Rubin, public relations representative for the nonprofit. Rubin said Office Depot terminated the license agreement with the foundation in December.
Office Depot, one of Palm Beach County’s largest headquarter employers and public companies, confirmed this week that it is no longer associated with the foundation that bore its name and said it is planning to launch a separate foundation.
Office Depot’s director of communications, Danny Jovic, said the company is “proud of the positive impact that we have made over the past 20 years” through its support of the foundation.
“Our new CEO, Gerry Smith, is fully committed to serving the communities in which we live and do business through philanthropic giving and robust employee volunteerism, and we will be launching a new foundation managed by our internal staff in the coming months,” Jovic said.
Smith, a former executive at technology company Lenovo, joined Office Depot in February 2017, and has been restructuring the office supplies retailer through acquisitions and top staff changes to become a business services company.
The retailer had revenues of $11 billion in 2016.
Troy McLellan, president of the Boca Raton Chamber, said the chamber will continue to work with the newly branded foundation as well as Office Depot’s new philanthropic program.
McLellan said Office Depot “is still trying to find its place in the market after the [Staples] merger didn’t go through.” Office Depot and Staples called off their planned merger in 2016 after it was challenged in court by the Federal Trade Commission.
As part of its changes, the new Listen Learn Care Foundation also relocated to 7700 Congress Ave. in Boca Raton from its space at Office Depot’s headquarters in Boca Raton.
Mary Wong, leader of the foundation for more than a decade and previously an Office Depot executive, continues as president and CEO of the newly named foundation, according to the foundation’s news release.
Mary Riedel, president and CEO of Broward-based Women in Distress, who has known Wong for two decades, said Wong has had an impact on the local community and even nationally. “She has been a force for philanthropy in many different ways,” Riedel said.
The 501(c) organization reported contributions and grants of $2.84 million for the fiscal year ended June 2016, compared with $5.99 million a year ago, according to the last IRS Form 990 available. Assets were $4.88 million by year’s end.
Two of Listen Learn Care Foundation’s signature events will go on as scheduled, Rubin said. The Difference Makers Leadership Forum is scheduled for March 22 and 23 at Old School Square in Delray Beach, and the Women’s Symposium will be May 3 and 4 at the Seminole Casino in Coconut Creek.