The Continental Group Employees Spread Holiday Joy to Children Throughout South Florida

Dec. 2, 2011 - PRLog -- HOLLYWOOD, Fla. – The Continental Group (TCG), a FirstService Residential Management company, will be joining forces with local charities to put smiles on children’s faces for the holidays. The Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach County offices will be contributing to various philanthropic activities throughout South Florida.

The Broward Region and Hollywood office employees will work with two nonprofit organizations, Toys for Tots and the “I Have a Dream” Foundation. Employees will bring toys for children between the ages of 7 and 9 years old during their annual holiday party and donate them to these youth organizations.  

“It’s great to know that you can make a difference for these children during the holidays. Our employees are always thrilled to be involved in such a great cause,” said Andi Escue, Director of Client Relations for the Broward office.

The Miami-Dade TCG office is also making a major difference this holiday season, sponsoring its fifth consecutive Voices for Children toy drive. This year, employees from the Miami-Dade office will “adopt” a child in the foster care system; this means each employee will be assigned a child to whom he/she will donate a toy, appropriate for the child’s age and gender. Moreover, boxes and donation bins are also available at TCG –managed properties throughout the region for residents to contribute toys.

“We are proud to continue our year-round relationship with Voices for Children. Our employees’ efforts will provide these children the gifts that will bring them holiday cheer for the Holidays,” added Hector Vargas, Vice President High-Rise of TCG.

The Boca Raton TCG office will also partner with two organizations, Boca Helping Hands and Spirit of Giving Network Holiday Gift Drive.  Employees will use previously raised funds to purchase non-perishable food items for Boca Helping Hands. Similarly, funds raised through their “Blue Jean Fridays” fundraisers will be used to purchase toys for the Spirit of Giving Network Holiday Gift Drive. In addition, each
employee will bring a gift for a child during their holiday party.

“It is a pleasure for us to participate in this year’s holiday collection efforts. We are proud to help make a difference in the lives of children in need,” said Gary Pyott, TCG President, Garden Style/HOA.  
Each holiday charitable effort is part of Continental Cares, TCG’s year-round corporate philanthropic outreach program dedicated to enhancing the lives of the neighbors, residents, and communities it serves. The primary focus of Continental Cares is to reach out to nonprofit organizations and entities that meet the Continental Cares mission.
 
“The essence of the season is making sure that every child can enjoy the holidays and I encourage all corporations to help make this possible in their local communities,” stated Tim O’Keefe, TCG’s CEO, who is the force behind the year-round and holiday initiatives taking place throughout its statewide regional offices.

About The Continental Group, Inc.
Founded in 1990, The Continental Group’s corporate headquarters is located in Hollywood, FL. It also has regional offices in Boca Raton, Miami, West Palm Beach, Wellington, Vero Beach, Orlando, Tampa/St. Petersburg, Jacksonville and Destin. The company is the largest manager of condominium and homeowner associations in the state, and one of South Florida’s leading private sector employers.  
Today, The Continental Group manages and maintains 1,500 Associations and more than 310,000 residential units. As the leading community association management company in Florida, Continental pioneered many of the practices widely utilized throughout the industry today.  
The Continental Group is a subsidiary of FirstService Residential Management (FSR). FSR is the largest manager of residential communities in North America, overseeing more than 5,600 properties and over 1.3 million residential units.
FirstService Residential is a subsidiary of FirstService Corporation (NASDAQ- FSRV, TSX: FSV), a global leader in the rapidly growing real estate services sector. Further information may be obtained at www.firstservice.com.

To learn more about The Continental Group, call (954) 925-8200, toll-free: (800) 215-2316 or visit www.tcgmgt.com.    
About Voices for the Children

Voices is part of a unique collaboration with the 11th Judicial Circuit Guardian ad Litem (GAL) Program, serving as its fundraising arm, with the goal of ensuring that a Guardian Ad Litem represents every abused child in Miami-Dade County. Voices also provides financial assistance to meet the children’s basic needs, such as medical, dental and mental-health services, food, clothing, furniture, school supplies, tutoring, day care, after-school care, summer camp, and more.

About Toys for Tots

The objectives of Toys for Tots are to help less fortunate children throughout the United
States experience the joy of Christmas; to play an active role in the development of one of our nation’s most valuable resources – our children; to unite all members of local
communities in a common cause for three months each year during the annual toy collection and distribution campaign; and to contribute to better communities in the future.

About I Have a Dream Foundation
The "I Have A Dream" Foundation is working to ensure that all children have the opportunity to pursue higher education. We empower children in low-income communities to achieve higher education by providing them with guaranteed tuition support and equipping them with the skills, knowledge, and habits they need to gain entry to higher education and succeed in college and beyond. By helping our Dreamers gain access to college, we are putting them on a different academic and life trajectory, while having a broader impact on the students' families and the generations that follow.
About Boca Helping Hands
Boca Helping Hands (BHH) is a community-based 501(c)(3) organization that was formed in 1998 by a group of local religious congregations. Now in its 14th year of serving the community, BHH has expanded the Food Program and Job Mentoring Center to help individuals and family with food, jobs and other purposes. The mission of BHH is to provide compassionate service through food and assistance programs to individuals, families, and children to instill dignity and break the cycle of dependence.