Charter One Bank Donates More Than 7,000 Soccer Balls to Metro Detroit Youth Leagues

Bank plans giveaway to kick off fall season and give balls to 12 Michigan communities

Youth soccer players will have a ball this fall when Charter One Bank distributes free soccer balls to youth leagues and

teams in 12 Metro Detroit communities. The balls will be donated to children

ranging in age from 5 to 8 years old. Charter One employees will serve as

"ambassadors" in their local communities and create fun-filled ways to give

away the balls.

"Charter One Bank is always looking for creative ways to support our local

communities, and we are particularly proud to sponsor local programs for

youth," said Sandra E. Pierce, president and CEO, Charter One Bank, Michigan.

"Partnering with our local community soccer associations has allowed us to

support thousands of children and families throughout southeast Michigan. We

look forward to a great fall soccer season."

The green and white soccer balls feature the Charter One logo. Every child

participating on the selected teams will receive his or her own personal ball.

Deliveries began October 1, 2005 and will continue throughout the season.

About Charter One Bank, N.A. Charter One Bank, N.A., is a $41 billion bank

operating in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Ohio. It has 124 branches and 159

ATMs in Michigan. Charter One is a subsidiary of Citizens Financial Group,

Inc., a $148 billion commercial bank holding company headquartered in

Providence, R.I. Citizens has more than 1,600 branches, approximately 3,100

ATMs and more than 27,000 employees in a 13-state retail branch network and

non-branch offices in more than 30 states. Citizens is the eighth-largest

commercial banking company in the United States ranked by deposits. Citizens

is owned by RBS (The Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc).

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