Aetna Announces Holiday Grants for Connecticut; Marks 16th Year of Support for Local Community Organizations.

HARTFORD, Conn. -- Aetna (NYSE: AET) today announced the donation of $102,000 in holiday grants to seventy social service agencies in Hartford and Middletown. For 16 years, Aetna has made holiday grants available to support local organizations facing year-end funding needs. The grants announced this year range in amount from $500 to $3,000. Since initiating the program, Aetna has given $1.6 million to area shelters, soup kitchens and other human service programs.

"We are pleased to be able to make these special holiday grants and help meet the needs of many local non-profit organizations," said Marilda L. Gandara, president of the Aetna Foundation. "Connecticut has been Aetna's home state for more than 150 years, and this holiday grant program allows us to support our neighbors in Hartford and Middletown."

"The women and children who come to the emergency shelter often arrive with little clothing, or personal items," said Cecile Enrico, executive director Interval House. "The Aetna Holiday Grant provides for food, bedding, toiletries and welcome packets that help the children and their mothers feel supported and cared for."

Some of the more notable grants include $3,000 to the Mercy House and Shelter Corporation, and the Saint Vincent DePaul Place. In addition, $2,500 donations were given to Foodshare, and Nutmeg Big Brothers Big Sisters. These well known organizations provide shelter, groceries and mentoring to the neediest in the Hartford and Middletown areas.

The Aetna Foundation 2004 Holiday Grant Recipients:

Hartford Area Grants:

--American National Red Cross

--Capitol Region Conference of Churches

--Catholic Charities Catholic Family Services, Inc.

--Catholic Family Service/Institute for Hispanic Family

--Center City Churches

--Center for Children's Advocacy

--Chrysalis Center

--Citadel of Love the Tabernacle of Celebration Praise

--Community Enterprises

--Community Health Services 

--Community Partners in Action

--Community Renewal Team, Inc.

--Connecticut Children's Medical Center - Pediatric and Youth HIV Program

--Connecticut Children's Medical Center Foundation

--Connecticut Institute for the Blind/Oak Hill

--ConnectiKids, Inc.

--Department of Children and Families

--Faith 7th Day Adventist Church Soup Kitchen

--Families in Crisis

--First Baptist Church of Hartford

--Foodshare

--Greater Hartford Chapter of Links, Inc.

--Hartford Food System, Inc.

--Hartford Interval House

--Hartford Neighborhood Centers

--Hartford Transitional Learning Academy

--Hispanic Health Council

--Horace Bushnell Congregate Homes

--Klingberg Family Centers, Inc.

--Liberty International Family and Educational Services

--Mount Moriah Corporation for Excellence

--Nutmeg Big Brothers Big Sisters

--Operation Fuel

--Rovers, Inc.

--Shelter for Women, Inc.

--Shiloh Baptist Church

--South Arsenal Neighborhood Development Corporation

--South Park Inn, Inc.

--The Association for Retarded Citizens of Connecticut

--The Bridge Family Center, Inc.

--The John Driscoll United Labor Agency

--The Rainbow Factory

--The Salvation Army, Hartford

--The West Indian Foundation

--Time for Life Corporation

--Trust House, Inc.

--Upper Albany Neighborhood Collaborative

--Village for Families and Children

--VNA Healthcare

--Young Women's Christian Association of the Hartford Region

--Youth Challenge Mission for Women

--Y-US, Inc.

--Zezzo House Corporation

Middletown Area Grants:

--American Red Cross: Middlesex Central CT Chapter

--Child and Family Agency of Southeastern Connecticut 

--Community Health Center

--Connecticut Juvenile Training School

--Connection, Inc.

--Cromwell Senior Center/Town of Cromwell

--Gilead Community Services

--I Have a Friend Youth Center, Inc.

--Saint Luke's Home

--Saint Vincent DePaul Place

--The Salvation Army, Middletown

--Mercy Housing and Shelter Corporation

--Middletown Parks and Recreation Department

--Positive Solutions, Inc.

--River Valley Services

--Warm the Children

--Young Men's Christian Association of Northern Middlesex County, Inc.

About the Aetna Foundation

The Aetna Foundation is the independent charitable and philanthropic arm of Aetna Inc. Founded in 1972, the Foundation seeks to help build healthy communities by funding initiatives that improve the quality of life where our employees and customers work and live. Since 1980, the Aetna Foundation has contributed more than $260 million in grants, scholarships and social investments. The Foundation's giving is focused on reducing racial and ethnic disparities in health care. In 2003, Aetna's philanthropic giving totaled $16.5 million. Additional information about the Aetna Foundation is available at www.aetna.com/foundation.

About Aetna

As one of the nation's leading providers of health care, dental, pharmacy, group life, disability and long-term care benefits, Aetna puts information and helpful resources to work for its approximately 13.6 million medical members, 11.6 million dental members, 8.3 million pharmacy members and 13.3 million group insurance members to help them make better informed decisions about their health care and protect their finances against health-related risks. Aetna provides easy access to cost-effective health care through a nationwide network of more than 646,000 health care professionals, including over 385,000 primary care and specialist doctors and 3,908 hospitals. For more information, please visit www.aetna.com. (Figures as of September 30, 2004)