Lilly to Recognize Employees Who Have Served Our Country Through the Military

INDIANAPOLIS, Nov. 9, 2011 /PRNewswire/ — U.S. military veterans employed by
Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE: LLY) will be recognized for their service to the
country during a special Veterans Recognition Event at the Lilly Corporate
Center 4 p.m. Monday, Nov. 14. The event is sponsored by the Veterans Leadership
Network (VLN), an employee resource group at Lilly, and by Employer Support of
the Guard & Reserve (ESGR), a Department of Defense agency.

The recognition event will honor current Lilly employees who have been activated
and deployed in support of military operations since September 11, 2001. More
than 100 Lilly employees have mobilized with the U.S. military Reserves or
National Guard, including three Lilly employees currently serving on active
duty. More than 1,762 months of combined service time has been given by Lilly
employees serving in combat operations, nation building activities and
humanitarian relief efforts over the last 10 years.

One Lilly employee, Jeffery Maxwell, is expected to return from his current tour
of duty in Iraq in time to attend the event. “Americans should be very proud of
their military,” Maxwell writes from overseas.

The event will feature highlights of Lilly’s military heritage, beginning with
company founder and Civil War veteran Colonel Eli Lilly in 1876 through the
present day. A demonstration of the company’s thanks and support for employees
who have served in the military following Sept. 11, 2001, and a special
recognition by the Department of Defense for Lilly’s commitment to military
support will round out the program.

John C. Lechleiter, Ph.D., chairman, president and chief executive officer of
Lilly, will take part in the ceremonies and will be joined by local dignitaries
and key representatives from the military and public sectors.

“It’s our great honor to recognize the contributions of these employees, and all
veterans, to our country,” Lechleiter said. “We also recognize the strengths
that veterans bring to our company – characteristics such as leadership,
discipline, adaptability to change and a mission-driven focus. These are
attributes that make a difference in the military, and they are essential to our
company as well.”

The VLN fosters opportunities for networking, awareness, recognition and
advocacy to address the needs of employee veterans within Lilly. The group is
focused on helping veterans who return from active duty reintegrate into their
jobs at Lilly.

“The VLN gives us the opportunity to get together and to communicate with each
other in a way that really helps returning service members,” said Diana Watson,
learning and development consultant at Lilly and a staff sergeant in the Army
National Guard. “It really is a brotherhood, a sisterhood, because we’ve all had
similar experiences that have shaped us.”

Lilly has a long history of supporting programs that help veterans and those
currently serving in the military. For example, Lilly has supported a number of
initiatives for the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans and HVAF of
Indiana, Inc. to help alleviate homelessness among veterans.

In addition, the Lilly Foundation has provided a grant to Give an Hour and the
American Psychiatric Foundation to address unmet mental health needs of soldiers
returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. The funds are used to recruit and educate
volunteer mental-health professionals to bridge the gap in mental-health
services for soldiers returning from service, as well as their families.

Veterans Day is officially recognized in the U.S. on Nov. 11. Originally set
aside as “Armistice Day” to celebrate the end of World War I, the day was
declared a national holiday in 1938 and later renamed Veterans Day in 1954 to
honor American veterans of all wars. The Department of Veterans Affairs
estimates there are 23 million veterans in the United States, including 500,000
in Indiana.

About Eli Lilly and Company

Lilly, a leading innovation-driven corporation, is developing a growing
portfolio of pharmaceutical products by applying the latest research from its
own worldwide laboratories and from collaborations with eminent scientific
organizations. Headquartered in Indianapolis, Ind., Lilly provides answers -
through medicines and information – for some of the world’s most urgent medical
needs. Additional information about Lilly is available at www.lilly.com. C-LLY

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20031219/LLYLOGO)

SOURCE Eli Lilly and Company