HELENA, Mont. (May 15, 2006) — The Montana Meth Project today announced that PPL Montana will partner with the organization on its statewide anti-Meth art competition, Paint the State.
Paint the State is a first-of-its-kind public art competition and large-scale community action program aimed at broadly communicating the risks of Meth use through public works of art. The contest offers 13- to 18-year-olds a way to get involved and compete for $6,000 cash awards in each of the 56 counties, and a statewide grand prize of $10,000. Prizes total more than $300,000. PPL Montana is generously contributing $250,000 as the contest's Platinum sponsor.
PPL Montana recently released results of its wide-ranging quality-of-life survey of Montana residents that found methamphetamine abuse to be the leading social concern in the state.
"Methamphetamine abuse is damaging the social fabric and economic viability of this state," said Brad Spencer, chief operating officer of PPL Montana. "It is affecting the future generation of policymakers, community leaders, business owners, and workforce members. The Paint the State contest is the perfect way for us to support creative teens who want to participate in the fight against Meth and to invest in our future leaders."
"We applaud Tom Seibel and the Meth Project's work to raise awareness on this issue," Spencer said, "and we're proud to support this effort."
"The PPL Montana Quality-of-Life Survey clearly identified methamphetamine as the number one problem facing Montana," said Tom Siebel, chairman, Montana Meth Project. "We are delighted to partner with PPL. I thank them for their generous support and for taking a leadership role among Montana corporations to support this program."
For the Paint the State contest, teens are asked to use either the "Meth: Not Even Once" logo, tagline, or other anti-meth theme, a little inspiration, and a lot of imagination to create a work of art — any style, any medium — that's clearly visible by the general public. Teens may enlist the help of friends, family, businesses, and the community to conceive the most compelling works of art and help spread the message of Meth prevention.
Prizes will be given in each of Montana's 56 counties. Every county will award three winners: $3,000 for first place, $2,000 for second place and $1,000 for third place. First-place winners from each county will compete for a $10,000 statewide grand prize, judged by celebrated Montana artist, Russell Chatham. Winners will be announced at an award ceremony at the Capitol rotunda in Helena on Aug. 9.
Contestants must register for the contest online at www.paintthestate.org by midnight MDT, June 15. Final artwork is due July 10. Visit www.paintthestate.org for complete contest guidelines.
About PPL Montana
PPL in Montana has 500 employees who generate and sell electricity. PPL Montana operates coal-fired power plants at Colstrip and Billings, as well as 11 hydroelectric power plants along Rosebud Creek and the Missouri, Madison, Clark Fork and Flathead rivers. It has offices in Billings, Butte and Helena. PPL EnergyPlus operates a trading floor in Butte that markets and sells power in the wholesale and retail energy market. PPL Montana and PPL EnergyPlus are subsidiaries PPL Corporation (NYSE: PPL). More information about the company and the PPL Montana Quality-of-Life Survey is available at www.pplmontana.com.
About the Montana Meth Project
The Montana Meth Project is a not-for-profit organization headquartered in Missoula, Montana. The Montana Meth Project implements a range of advertising and community action programs to reduce methamphetamine use among Montana teens. The Meth Project is funded by a grant from the Thomas and Stacey Siebel Foundation. For more information, visit www.montanameth.org.
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Montana Meth Project Contact:
Romi Neustadt, 406-551-4242 office; 406-579-9947 mobile
rneustadt@gmail.com