Henkel, a Fortune Global 500 company dedicated to making people’s lives easier, better and more beautiful with its brands and technologies, launched the Henkel Helps Create! Kids’ Art Contest in August 2009. Children ages 2-18 were invited to dig into their crayon boxes, watercolor palettes and art supplies to depict their unique visions for creating a better world, and to upload their creations into the virtual art gallery at www.HenkelHelps.com for a chance to win travel awards and cash prizes.

Artistic submissions will be judged by online visitors and celebrity judges, who include contemporary artist Romero Britto, Fancy Nancy author Jane O’Connor, Sotheby’s Auction House Print Specialist Courtney Booth, and Anelle Miller, Director of the Society of Illustrators.

Review all of the entries and vote for your favorite artist. The artist in each category with the most online votes will receive $500 towards art supplies. The top four winners in each category selected by the celebrity judges will win a trip to New York to display their artwork at the Society of Illustrators and Museum of American Illustration on November 5, 2009. Full contest rules are available on the Henkel Helps Web site at www.henkelhelps.com.

Social Responsibility
Henkel has a special focus on helping children and donates more than $1 million annually for employee volunteer projects that benefit children and young people all over the world. The Henkel Helps Create! Kids’ Art Contest is an extension of the 2008 “Henkel Helps” Schools program, where deserving schools from all over America wrote in to tell how Henkel could improve their school. After receiving hundreds of entries and thousands of public votes, Henkel awarded $25,000 to Aplington-Parkersburg High School (A-P), Parkersburg, Iowa.

About Henkel Helps Create! Kids’ Art Contest
HenkelHelps.com invites children to submit their artwork in four categories by age: Budding Artists (ages 2-5), Creative Kids (ages 6-9), Crafty Creators (ages 10-13) and Talented Teens (ages 14-18).  Children are encouraged to use any arts and crafts tools at their disposal to put their visions on paper, and may also include a short caption with their artwork.  Entries must be submitted by a parent or legal guardian and may be uploaded in JPG file format at www.HenkelHelps.com. Vote now and every day until Sept 30. No purchase necessary. Void where prohibited. Contest is open to legal residents of the 50 United States who are 18 years of age or older.

To learn more about the Henkel Helps Create! Kids’ Art Contest, please visit www.HenkelHelps.com, join our group on Facebook and follow the latest contest news on Twitter @HenkelHelps.