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DENVER--([ BUSINESS WIRE ])--U.S. Bank in the Denver metropolitan area is providing free backpacks and school supplies to 113 children who reside at Mercy Housingas Grace Apartments in Denver. U.S. Bank employee volunteers, along with market president Hassan Salem and Mercy Housingas Senior Vice President of Real Estate Development Jennifer Erixon and community partners, will distribute the backpacks and school supplies from 4 p.m. until 6 p.m. this Wednesday, Aug. 22.

"The U.S. Bank team is excited to distribute the backpacks and school supplies to the children at Grace Apartments"

Mercy Housingas Grace Apartments is located at 8888 East 13th Ave. (13th Ave. and Yosemite St.) in Denver. Grace is a family property that maintains a very diverse population comprised of refugees and immigrants primarily from Southeast Asian countries like Bhutan, Nepal and Burma.

aThe U.S. Bank team is excited to distribute the backpacks and school supplies to the children at Grace Apartments,a said Salem. aThis special event is one way we show our commitment to the Denver community. U.S. Bank is honored to have a long and supportive relationship with Mercy Housing. U.S. Bank has helped Mercy Housing create and preserve housing for lower income families by providing grants, sponsorships, employees as board members and financing for their operations and housing development projects in metro Denver, and across U.S. Bank's 25-state retail footprint.a

The backpacks and school materials were supplied through collaboration between U.S. Bank and Portland, Oregon-based nonprofit Schoolhouse Supplies. U.S. Bank and Schoolhouse Supplies have been partners since 2001.

Mercy Housing, a national not-for-profit affordable housing organization headquartered in Denver, has a presence in 43 states, serves more than 139,300 people on any given day and has participated in the development, financing or operation of 41,700 homes. Mercy Housing serves families, seniors and people with special needs (formerly homeless, people with HIV/AIDS and the developmentally disabled). For more information about Mercy Housing, please visit [ mercyhousing.org ].

Schoolhouse Supplies is a nonprofit organization that gives free school supplies to teachers and students in need in and around Portland, Oregon. Teachers spend an average of $1,700 of their own money each year to provide basic school supplies for their classrooms. Since opening in January 2000, Schoolhouse Supplies has offset these costs by distributing more than $16.7 million in supplies to classrooms, teachers and students in need. The mission is based on the belief that every child deserves school supplies and has the right to a quality public education. For more information, call 503-249-9933 or visit [ www.schoolhousesupplies.org ].

U.S. Bank operates 105 branches and employs more than 2,000 people in the Denver metro area. Minneapolis-based U.S. Bancorp (NYSE: USB), with $353 billion in assets as of June 30, 2012, is the parent company of U.S. Bank, the fifth-largest commercial bank in the United States. The company operates 3,080 banking offices in 25 states and 5,085 ATMs and provides a comprehensive line of banking, brokerage, insurance, investment, mortgage, trust and payment services products to consumers, businesses and institutions. U.S. Bancorp and its employees are dedicated to improving the communities they serve, for which the company earned the 2011 Spirit of America Award, the highest honor bestowed on a company by United Way. Visit U.S. Bancorp on the web at [ www.usbank.com ].

Note to editors: Media are welcome to attend. Jennifer Erixon, senior vice president of real estate development for Mercy Housing, and U.S. Bank Denver Market President, Hassan Salem, will be available for interviews.