Federated Department Stores Honored for Dedication to Community Service
Award presented by Points of Light Foundation & Volunteer Center National Network

(Washington, D.C. – August 5, 2005) – Federated Department Stores, Inc., a retail company based in Cincinnati, Ohio and New York, N.Y., received the Award for Excellence in Workplace Volunteer Programs (AEWVP) in recognition of the company's outstanding commitment to engaging employees in community service.

The award was presented today at 12PM at the Washington Convention Center during the National Conference on Volunteering and Service. David Lauren, senior vice president of advertising, marketing and corporate communications, Polo Ralph Lauren, was the keynote speaker at today's awards luncheon.

The Awards for Excellence in Workplace Volunteer Programs is an international award that honors businesses of all sizes and from all industries that have made a commitment to effectively engaging employees in volunteering. The Points of Light Foundation, the nation's leading volunteer resource, views companies as one of the primary sources of volunteers and provides a full range of services to help businesses develop and sustain workplace volunteer programs.

Federated Department Stores' community commitment is put into action with Partners in Time, its employee volunteer program founded in 1989. Since then, 1.1 million hours of service have impacted 230 cities nationwide. About 50,000 volunteers in 500 Macy's and Bloomingdale's stores and Federated support divisions make a difference through 2,500 projects annually.

“Our company and our dedicated ‘Partners in Time' volunteers truly appreciate this recognition,” said Terry J. Lundgren, chairman, president and CEO of Federated Department Stores. “Our associates embrace the program as it provides opportunities to ‘give back,' with support for the issues that are important to them and their individual communities. Through 15 years, and 1.1 million hours of service, we have appreciated our volunteers as the personal connection to Federated's philanthropy. We've seen the impact in our cities nationwide and encourage other companies to get involved through the Points of Light Foundation or local Volunteer Councils. Together, we make a great difference.”

“Workplace volunteering can have a profound impact on employees, communities and the long-term success of a company,” says Robert K. Goodwin, president & CEO of the Points of Light Foundation. “Federated Department Stores is a shining example of the role that businesses can play in alleviating social problems and bringing about healthier communities.”

Lauryn, a Federated Department Stores director, talks about her experiences volunteering with the organization: “When we did the Juvenile Diabetes Walk, for example, it was just amazing to me the number of people who came out on a Sunday from every level of the organization to participate. It created a real community and family feeling. It brings the entire organization closer together.”

Federated Department Stores was selected by a panel of distinguished judges from major business and nonprofit groups, who based their decisions on how well Federated's overall workplace-based volunteer program reflects the Principles of Excellence for Workplace Volunteering, a plan to ACT:

•  Acknowledge that effective volunteer programs contribute to a company's ability to achieve its business goals

•  Commit to establishing and supporting a program that involves all employees and treats volunteering like any other key business requirement

•  Target volunteering to address serious social problems within their communities

“Federated Department Stores is a role model for other members of the business community to make volunteering an integral part of their workplace culture,” Goodwin adds.

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The Points of Light Foundation & Volunteer Center National Network, a nonpartisan and nonprofit organization, supports and organizes the vital work of community volunteers who help solve our nation's most serious social problems by bringing people and resources together. The Foundation builds knowledge, skills and programs for volunteer leaders and volunteers to succeed, and provides leadership to mobilize volunteers in thousands of local communities across the country. For more information, call 202-729-8000 or visit www.pointsoflight.org.