BASF helps Girl Scouts send cookies to U.S. soldiers overseas
Ascension Girl Scouts send 756 boxes of cookies and handmade greeting cards

GEISMAR, La., April 7, 2006 -- American soldiers serving overseas will soon be receiving hundreds of boxes of Girl Scout cookies accompanied by colorful handmade cards donated by Ascension Parish Girl Scouts and employees of BASF’s Geismar site.

The Girl Scout troops of Ascension Parish joined with BASF earlier this year in the “Troops Supporting Troops” program to raise money to purchase cookies for U.S. soldiers. As part of the program, about 100 Girl Scouts gathered at the Knights of Columbus Hall in St. Amant on a recent Saturday to make patriotic greeting cards to accompany the cookies going to the overseas troops.

The BASF Geismar site’s Women and Business Issues (W&BI) group partnered with the Girl Scouts and collected enough donations from BASF employees to send 756 boxes of cookies to the soldiers. BASF employees Mark Hughes and Philip Johnson, who serve in the military, also helped in the effort.

Douglas Beckwith, a member of BASF’s Site Training Group, spoke to the Girl Scouts as they gathered to create the greeting cards. Beckwith’s son serves as a captain in the U.S. Army in Iraq.

“I can’t tell you how much it means that you came here on a Saturday to do this for the troops,” Beckwith said. “My son tells us that the troops live for getting cards and packages from home. It means a lot to them.”

Terri Barber, a BASF Customer Service Representative, said the W&BI group works on a variety of community programs.

“Working with the Girl Scouts has been a real pleasure for all of us,” Barber said. “It’s great to see these future leaders perform services for their community while setting and achieving personal goals.”

W&BI is an organization within BASF Corporation that serves as a catalyst for diversity by supporting initiatives that address work life balance issues, professional development, mentoring and networking. Many members of W&BI also serve as volunteers in their local communities.

Girl Scouts of the USA is dedicated to helping all girls build character and gain skills for success in the real world. Girl Scouts receive merit badges by participating in activities and learning new skills. The annual cookie sale is a major fundraising event that helps the Girl Scouts organization maintain its operation.

BASF’s Geismar site manufactures a wide range of chemicals used in hundreds of consumer products.

For more information, contact:
Helen Cane                                                                                                                                                    
BASF                                                                                                                                                                          
Tel: (225) 339-7207                                                                                                                           
E-mail: helen.cane@basf.com                                                                                              

Maureen Paukert
BASF
Tel: (973) 245-6077
E-mail: maureen.paukert@basf.com