Prudential Financial Vice Chairman Mark Grier Joins TAPS Board of Directors

WASHINGTON --(Business Wire)--

Mark Grier, vice chairman of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU), has been elected to the board of directors for the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS), a national organization that provides compassionate care for families of America's fallen military heroes.

"The TAPS Board of Directors plays a critical role in ensuring that the organization meets its mission to care for the families of our fallen military," said Bonnie Carroll, founder and president of TAPS. "Mark Grier supports all we do to help grieving military families. We appreciate his willingness to serve in this important role."

Grier joined Prudential as chief financial officer in 1995 and was named vice chairman in 2002. He leads the company's Global Strategic Initiatives and has oversight responsibility for the Finance, Risk Management, Chief Investment, Corporate Actuarial, Investor Relations, Global Business and Technology Solutions (News - Alert), Auditing, and Global Marketing Communications functions. He also has oversight of the company's Veterans Initiatives program, which provides a robust training and educational platform for veterans and a talent pipeline for the company.

"I believe strongly in TAPS and its mission of serving the families of our fallen heroes," said Grier. "TAPS provides an extremely valuable support system and programs that help these grieving families move forward in their lives, and I am proud to be a member of its board."

In addition to being represented on the TAPS board by Grier, Prudential's support for the organization includes a $1.62 million two-year grant, announced in November 2011, to help TAPS improve capacity for its National Military Survivor Helpline (1.800.959.TAPS [8277]), which is answered 24-hours a day, 365 days a year. Carroll pointed out that many of the most difficult calls come in the middle of the night or on holidays such as Father's Day or Mother's Day, when other support services are closed.

"The support from Prudential was much needed, as the volume of calls to the TAPS Survivor Helpline from bereaved military families seeking help increased 24 percent to more than 12,000 calls in the past year, with more callers in distress or struggling with suicidal ideation," said Carroll. Funding from Prudential also helped support the survivor care team that welcomes newly-bereaved military families into TAPS and helps them identify the support services they might need.

TAPS helps people grieving the loss of fallen military service men and women, regardless of their relationship to the deceased, geography, or circumstance of the death. Since its founding in 1994, TAPS has offered support to more than 35,000 surviving family members of fallen military service members. Carroll pointed out that on average, it takes five to seven years for people who experience a traumatic loss to reach a "new normal." TAPS provides peer-based emotional support, grief and trauma resources, seminars for adults, Good Grief camps for children, case work assistance, and a 24/7 resource and information helpline for all who have been affected by a death in the Armed Forces.

For more information about TAPS, go to www.taps.org or call 800.959.TAPS (8277).