Our readers, whether personally or as part of institutions, teams and companies they help lead, are constantly giving back. And each December, we highlight 12 notable examples of these gifts, volunteer events and other good works to honor an industry-wide commitment to charity.
Banker & Tradesman also rounds up recent instances of charitable giving, volunteering and other good deeds by members of the real estate and banking industries in Massachusetts, in regular Community Good Works features on its website. To submit items for Community Good Works, email editorial@thewarrengroup.com.
January
Cutline: Boston-based First Priority Credit Union gave $1 million to Brockton homelessness services and housing provider NeighborWorks Housing Solutions. The money will fund the predevelopment phase of a permanent supportive housing project in Quincy. Pictured: Staff of First Priority Credit Union, the Federal Home Loan Bank of Boston and NeighborWorks Housing Solutions pose for a photo to commemorate the donation. Photo courtesy of First Priority Credit Union
February
Gilbane Building Company employees, including the unidentified employee pictured, right, visited Thomas A. Edison Elementary School in Brighton to teach students about STEM careers as part of Associated General Contractors of Massachusetts Adopt-A-School. At the event, team members joined students in a Lego-building project management activity and a sustainability bingo game, and provided a drone demonstration outside. Photo courtesy of Gilbane Building Company
March
Oxford-based BankHometown gave $6,500 to co-sponsor a production of “Come From Away” at Worcester’s The Hanover Theatre. The musical tells the story of 7,000 airline passengers stranded in a small Newfoundland town, and that of the town’s residents, in the wake of 9/11. Pictured: Executives from The Hanover and BankHometown, including theater CEO Alan Seiffert (left) and bank CEO Robert J. Morton (right). Photo courtesy of BankHometown
April
Littleton-based Workers Credit Union Assistant Vice President Calla Flannery (left, seated) organized and taught several financial education classes at several schools across Central Massachusetts, including in Lancaster and Bolton, for students ages 15-22 on the autism spectrum or living with other significant challenges. These students are nearing the age at which they loose support from state services, and will need financial skills to live independently. Photo courtesy of Workers Credit Union
May
Norwood-based OneLocal Bank gave $5,000 to the Norwood High School Post Prom Planning Committee to help fund the school’s annual after-prom party. The event, in its 36th year, aims to offer a substance-free celebration for students following the school’s prom and is funded entirely by donations. Pictured: OneLocal Bank President and CEO John Galvani (right), Executive Vice President and COO Julie McDermott (left) and members of the Norwood High School Post Prom Planning Committee. Photo courtesy of OneLocal Bank
June
More than 300 employees of Taunton-based Bristol County Savings Bank volunteered with 18 nonprofits during the bank’s dedicated day of community service, including at Books Are Wings in Pawtucket, Rhode Island (pictured). The group distributes free books to area children to help promote literacy and enrich their lives. Photo courtesy of Bristol County Savings Bank
July
Cummings, the Woburn-based suburban office giant that directs its profits to a foundation, announced the 150 recipients from the latest cycle of its $30 Million Grant Program. Notable recipients include Building Mass Careers and nonprofit developer Harborlight Homes. Pictured: Harborlight Homes Senior Operations Manager Anna Siedzik (left) Harborlight Homes board member Rick Alpern (right) and Cummings Foundation co-founder Joyce Cummings. Photo courtesy of Cummings
August
GFA Federal Credit Union, based in Gardner, announced a $75,000, three-year gift to Heywood Hospital, also in Gardner, beginning with an initial $25,000 donation this year. Pictured, left to right: GFA Federal Credit Union President and CEO Mark Hettinger, Heywood Hospital President and CEO Rozanna Penney and GFA Vice President of Marketing Christal Brown. Photo courtesy of GFA Federal Credit Union
September
Boston-based Eastern Bank gave the Braintree Little League program a $10,000 gift to mark the first time in history its 12-year-old players made it to the Little League World Series during an epic series of wins this year. Photo by Greg M. Cooper | Courtesy of Eastern Bank
October
The Boston-based Sarkis Team, affiliated with residential brokerage Douglas Elliman, led a cleanup of Titus Sparrow Park in Boston’s South End in partnership with a community group affiliated with the park. The Sarkis Team said 20 staffers and agents, plus family members and “20+” community members who collected roughly 30 bags of trash, weeds and yard waste. Photo courtesy of The Sarkis Team
November
Northrbidge-based residential brokerage ERA Key Realty announced that a “wig party” organized by one of its agent teams, Wilmington-based Team Blue, raised $1,350 in support of the Wilmington Community Fund’s 80th anniversary and gathered “a large amount” of unspecified nonperishable food item donations for the Wilmington Food Pantry. Photo courtesy of ERA Key Realty
December
Employees at Clinton Savings Bank organized their latest annual coat drive to benefit WHEAT Community Connections, a social services provider serving the town of Clinton that’s part of the United Way of Tri-County. This year’s coat drive netted 65 new and gently-used coats for residents in need. Pictured, left to right: WHEAT Community Connections director Liz Leonard and Clinton Savings Bank employees Brooke LaVache, Vice President and Human Resource Manager Danielle McCarter and Dawn McHugh. Photo courtesy of Clinton Savings Bank
