Toro looks to help non-profits in Riverside County

The Toro Co. will mark its 100th anniversary this year with two programs meant to help non-profit organizations.

The Minneapolis-based company announced this month that it has launched its Legacy Grant Program and Annual Product Donation Program, both of which are aimed at non-profits that operate in communities where Toro employees live and work, said Mike Baron, Toro’s national specifications manager for water management products.

In California, both programs will be available in Riverside County and the community of El Cajon, where Toro operates its irrigation headquarters and agricultural irrigation division respectively.

Grants will also be available in Florida, Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, Texas and Wisconsin. Internationally, grants will be distributed in Australia, Belgium, China, Germany, Italy, Mexico, Romania and the United Kingdom.

Both programs will be funded by The Toro Foundation, which has received donations from The Toro Co. during the past few years, Baron said.

The legacy grants will help non-profit entities that want to beautify and preserve their outdoor environments and enhance their green spaces at work and at home. Size of the grants will vary from market to market: in Riverside County they’re expected to range from $5,000 to $20,000, Baron said.

Under the product donation program, The Toro Co. will donate equipment – including snowblowers, lawn mowers and sprinklers – that a non-profit can use to improve their landscaping and upgrade their community in the process.

As of now, both programs will happen this year only, but the grant program might be continued next year or the year after under a different name, Baron said.

Anyone interested in applying for either program should visit www.toro.com/community.

Applications for both programs will be accepted through March 31 and are available to any non-profit within 30 miles of a Toro community.

For more information call Judson McNeil at (952) 887-8870.