Our Communities
Building Foundations
To be integral and indispensable to the communities in which DPR works
It would be easy enough for the DPR Foundation to be satisfied with the significant financial contributions it has made to help socio-economically disadvantaged children within the communities in which DPR has established operations. In 2010, DPR contributed $470,000 to 12 organizations across the country, bringing its three-year contribution total to $895,000.
While these contributions surely help the selected organizations meet their missions, DPR specifically targets work with those charities that are in need of true hands-on assistance. “In typical DPR fashion, we want to be involved,” said Jeff Vertucci, who serves on the DPR Foundation Board of Directors. “If our employees are truly connected to the organization, we can make the biggest difference. This also allows us to see firsthand how we are able to benefit the communities we serve.”
Three of the newest receiving organizations, Future for Kids, StandUp for Kids and the Boys & Girls Club of Pomona Valley, have kicked off the summer with numerous events where DPR employees have had the opportunity to help out:
STANDUP FOR KIDS
StandUp for Kids’ mission to help homeless and street kids is carried out by a national volunteer force, whose on-the-streets outreach efforts find, stabilize, and assist homeless and street kids in their efforts to improve their lives. DPR’s contribution supports the outreach centers and the “Don’t Run Away” programs operated in San Diego and Oceanside, CA. In addition to involvement at an advisory or board level, DPR employees participate in frontline volunteer work including serving meals at outreach centers, maintaining or improving facilities, and fundraising at events such as the Bro-Am Surf Contest & Concert.
FUTURE FOR KIDS
Scottsdale, AZ-based Future for Kids provides mentorship to at-risk children, educating them about fitness, health and wellness. The DPR Foundation’s grant has helped support the organization’s camp where kids can attend, free of charge, and spend a full day learning and playing sports taught by professional athletes. DPR employees came out and volunteered, along with Arizona State University’s head football coach, Dennis Erickson, who kicked off the camp. Following a group stretch to get ready for the day’s activities, participants moved through sports and fitness stations and played catch with Arizona Cardinals quarterback John Skelton.
Boys & Girls Club of PoMoNa Valley
The Boys & Girls Club of Pomona Valley, which promotes and enhances the development of boys and girls by instilling a sense of competence, usefulness, belonging and influence, was chosen by DPR as the site for a Rebuilding Together project. As builders, DPR jumped at the opportunity to put construction skills to good use at the club’s Pomona, CA, facility, transforming one large multi-purpose room into several programming spaces to be used for music, arts and crafts, homework help, woodshop and other various activities. The DPR Foundation followed up the renovation project with a grant to outfit the spaces with important pieces of equipment.
Visit http://www.DPRFoundation.org for more information.