Blue Bird’s Foundation Promotes Education, Health and Safety Programs in Georgia

Blue Bird School Bus Foundation Donates $60,000 to Eleven Leading Community Groups in its Home State

MACON, Ga.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Blue Bird School Bus Foundation, charitable arm of iconic school bus manufacturer Blue Bird Corporation (Nasdaq: BLBD), continues to invest in the education, health, and safety of children in its home state of Georgia. The Foundation hosted its second community empowerment event this year and awarded a total of $60,000 to eleven local area nonprofit organizations, including:

1. Boys and Girls Clubs of the Chattahoochee Valley	7. Ronald McDonald House Charities of Central Georgia
2. Communities in Schools of Central Georgia	8. Twiggs County Extension 4-H
3. Jay’s HOPE Foundation	9. Kid’s College at Wesleyan College
4. Macon County Board of Education	10. Peach County Family Connection
5. First Tee of Middle Georgia	11. Middle Georgia Community Food Bank, Inc.
6. Mercer University

Donations ranged from $2,500 up to $10,000.

"Blue Bird is proud to serve as a good corporate citizen in Georgia, our home state for nearly a century," said Blue Bird president and CEO John Wyskiel. "Our foundation partners with outstanding nonprofit organizations to help address the most pressing social needs in our communities. We are committed to advancing the education, health, and safety of the children in our midst, thereby, setting them up for long-term success.”

“Many children in our community rely on free breakfast and lunch at school. We provide much-needed, nutritious food to students during weekends and holidays,” said Kathy R. McCollum, president and CEO of the Middle Georgia Community Food Bank, which received the top-level contribution of $10,000 at the foundation event. “Child-friendly food products are rarely donated and must be purchased by the food bank. We appreciate the generous funding from Blue Bird School Bus Foundation to purchase food for this program so that students go to school healthy and ready to learn.”

“We are truly grateful for this generous investment from the Blue Bird School Bus Foundation,” said Andrew Felton, II, Executive Director of Peach County Family Connection. “This contribution of support in the amount of $7,500 will allow us to strengthen our outreach and deliver meaningful programming focused on conflict resolution, social-emotional development, and mental health access and support for the students and families we serve.”

Since its inception in 2015, the Blue Bird School Bus Foundation has donated approximately $715,000 in charitable contributions to various community organizations, including nearly 80 Georgia-based nonprofits.

In addition, Blue Bird announced its Dealers Driving Communities Forward program two years ago. This initiative empowers Blue Bird bus dealers in the United States to support charitable organizations and make a lasting, positive difference in their local communities. The company provides up to $2,500 per calendar year to support the community outreach of its dealer partners.

About Blue Bird School Bus Foundation Inc.

The Blue Bird School Bus Foundation Inc. is a Georgia nonprofit corporation with the mission to promote education, health, and safety for children in the state of Georgia. Established in 2015, the Foundation supports organizations that directly benefit school age children under 19 years old as well as organizations which directly support disadvantaged communities. For more information, visit https://bbsbf.org.

About Blue Bird Corporation

Blue Bird (NASDAQ: BLBD) is recognized as a technology leader and innovator of school buses since its founding in 1927. Our dedicated team members design, engineer and manufacture school buses with a singular focus on safety, reliability, and durability. School buses carry the most precious cargo in the world – 25 million children twice a day – making them the most trusted mode of student transportation. The company is the proven leader in low- and zero-emission school buses with more than 25,000 propane, natural gas, and electric powered buses sold. Blue Bird is transforming the student transportation industry through cleaner energy solutions. For more information on Blue Bird's complete product and service portfolio, visit www.blue-bird.com.