THE HOME DEPOT TO BUILD NEW PLAYGROUND IN NEW ORLEANS

KABOOM! Playground to Honor Gill as 2006 Recipient of the

Academy of Country Music/The Home Depot Humanitarian Award

BURBANK, Calif. (July 31, 2006) – The Academy of Country Music® and The Home Depot®, the world’s largest home improvement retailer, announced today that country music superstar Vince Gill will join volunteers from The Home Depot and the surrounding community to construct a new KaBOOM! playground in one day at the relocated campus of the International School of Louisiana (ISL) in New Orleans on September 25, 2006. The playground is being built in honor of Gill, who was the 2006 recipient of the Academy of Country Music/The Home Depot Humanitarian Award at the 41st Annual Academy of Country Music Awards.

In its fifth year, the Humanitarian Award recognizes artists who serve others, have a generous spirit and help build the dreams of those in need. In addition to recognition at the awards show, the Humanitarian Award recipient is honored with a KaBOOM! playground donated by The Home Depot in the city of his choice. Gill requested that his playground be built in New Orleans in order to help the city rebuild.

“It is truly an honor to be able to build this playground in New Orleans and give the children at the International School of Louisiana a reason to smile and a place to play,” said Gill. “Given the devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina, it is an obvious need for the community.”

Prior to Hurricane Katrina, ISL operated out of two undersized rented facilities, neither of which had adequate playspaces. Both buildings were destroyed in the flooding caused by the storm, and the school was relocated to a former Orleans Parish school building with no playground equipment on site. The new playground being built at ISL will provide a safe and fun place to play for almost 400 students currently enrolled at the school.

“Many of us in the country community are still hit hard when we remember the devastation of Hurricane Katrina,” commented Bob Romeo, Academy of Country Music executive director. “It is wonderful to see how many of our artists are out there still trying to bring awareness to these hard-hit communities, and by Vince Gill picking New Orleans as the site for his KaBOOM! playground build, it is just another example of the dedication he and our community have to helping one another.”

Gill was selected to receive the Academy of Country Music/The Home Depot Humanitarian Award by a special blue-ribbon committee comprised of executives in the country music industry as well as local and national philanthropic leaders for his ongoing community service and charitable giving of his time and talent. Past recipients of the Humanitarian Award include Reba McEntire, Lonestar, Martina McBride and Neal McCoy.

“In recognition of The Home Depot Humanitarian Award, we are pleased to partner with KaBOOM! to build a playground in honor of Vince, an individual who shares his valuable time unselfishly to help others,” said Roger Adams, senior vice president, Marketing, The Home Depot. “As part of The Home Depot’s ongoing commitment to rebuild the Gulf region affected by the hurricanes, Team Depot associate volunteers will work side by side with Vince to not only build the playground, but to provide a gathering space for the entire community.”

The playground design was created with input from children from the community who attended a “Design Day” event on July 19. The children’s drawings will be used to create the final design for the playground, which will be constructed in just one day this fall by hundreds of volunteers, including Gill.

THE RECIPIENT

Seventeen-time Grammy award-winning artist Vince Gill has sold more than 22 million albums. Among his many musical honors include his induction into the Grand Ole Opry in 1991 and winning five Academy of Country Music Awards. In addition to his music and performing, Gill is also dedicated to giving back to those in need. Gill dedicates much of his time to programs for children’s recreation and education, the terminally ill, the homeless and hungry, cultural and environmental preservation, and the humane treatment of animals. In 1993, Gill established “The Vinny,” an annual pro/celebrity golf tournament, to raise money for the Junior Golf program. Gill also sponsors and participates in dozens of organized charities, and nearly all of his concerts have a local charity component.

Vincent Grant Gill was born in 1957, in Norman, Okla., the son of a federal judge and a homemaker. By the time he was in high school, he had become proficient on the banjo and guitar and was playing in his first bluegrass band. After graduation, he began pursuing music professionally, working with such acts as the Bluegrass Alliance, Boone Creek, Sundance and, most famously, Pure Prairie League. Gill also toured with Rodney Crowell’s high-octane backup band the Cherry Bombs. In 1983, he signed to RCA Records, where he scored his first solo country hits, among them “Oklahoma Borderline” and “Cinderella.” Gill moved to MCA Records in 1989. The following year, he achieved his big breakthrough with “When I Call Your Name.” His high, pure tenor voice and unerring sense of harmony have made him a favorite duet recording partner for dozens of fellow artists, from Ralph Stanley to Barbra Streisand.

Gill has created a 4-CD set of 43 new and original songs that MCA Records will release Oct. 17 under the title These Days. The collection is an artistic tour de force that displays Gill’s mastery of lyrics and musical styles.

THE INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL OF LOUISIANA (ISL)

The International School of Louisiana (ISL) is a tuition-free public charter school that emphasizes an awareness of the global community with respect for its variety of people and cultures. All classes at ISL are taught in Spanish or French by native-speaking teachers, with the exception of English, physical education and art. With its language immersion program, ISL prepares students for the diverse and challenging work and marketplace of the 21st century. The mission of ISL is to provide a challenging education emphasizing French and Spanish language immersion, international awareness, the celebration of diversity and community responsibility. For more information, visit www.isl-edu.org.

THE HOME DEPOT

The Home Depot® is the world's largest home improvement specialty retailer, with 2,080 retail stores in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, 10 Canadian provinces and Mexico. Through its HD SupplySM businesses, The Home Depot is also one of the largest diversified wholesale distributors in the United States, with more than 900 locations in the United States and Canada offering products and services for building, improving and maintaining homes, businesses and municipal infrastructures. In fiscal 2005, The Home Depot had sales of $81.5 billion and earnings of $5.8 billion. The Company employs approximately 355,000 associates and has been recognized by FORTUNE magazine as the No. 1 Most Admired Specialty Retailer and the No. 13 Most Admired Corporation in America for 2006. The Home Depot’s stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: HD) and is included in the Dow Jones industrial average and Standard & Poor's 500 index.

KaBOOM!

Celebrating its 10-year anniversary in 2006, KaBOOM! is a national nonprofit organization that envisions a great place to play within walking distance of every child in America. Over the past decade, KaBOOM! has used its innovative community-build model to bring together business and community interests to construct

nearly 1,000 new playgrounds, skateparks, sports fields and ice rinks across North America. In 2005,

KaBOOM! launched Operation Playground, a two-year initiative to build 100 playgrounds in Gulf Coast communities affected by hurricanes Katrina and Rita. KaBOOM! offers a variety of resources, including a Web portal and online community, regional and national trainings, grants and publications for communities that wish to plan a new playspace on their own. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., KaBOOM! also has offices in Chicago, Atlanta and San Mateo, Calif. For more information, visit www.kaboom.org.

ACADEMY OF COUNTRY MUSIC

The Academy of Country Music was founded in 1964 with a mission to support, promote and enhance the advancement of the country music industry worldwide. The Academy, which is comprised of more than 4,000 professional members and more than 35,000 associate members, is headquartered in Burbank, Calif. For more information on the ACADEMY OF COUNTRY MUSIC AWARDS and the Academy of Country Music, please visit www.acmcountry.com.