ERA Real Estate recently announced its latest milestone in the ERA MDA Summer Camp Challenge. Last year at the brand’s annual International Business Conference, president and CEO Charlie Young challenged the organization to rally together to send 1,000 children with muscular diseases to a Muscular Dystrophy Association summer camp over the next three years. Now, just one year in, ERA’s community has reached 67 percent of its goal.
“When introducing the challenge to our enthusiastic network of real estate professionals last year, I encouraged them to pledge based on number of children they would like to send to camp, as opposed to a dollar amount,” reflects President and CEO Charlie Young. “The response has been exceptional. Not only have we reached 67 percent of our pledge goal – or 673 kids.”
Dedication to community is at the core of ERA Real Estate’s mission, and ERA brokers and agents have formed close relationships with MDA Goodwill Ambassadors and their families within their own communities. Thus, it was natural for brokerages from coast to coast to take a grassroots approach to fundraising – hosting events such as carnivals, golf tournaments, art shows and countless more. At this week’s ERA conference, team members participated in a “Riber Run and Dance Party” fundraiser for MDA, in honor of the late Jeff Riber Sr., raising more than $25,000. Riber was a long-standing and well-respected member of the ERA management team, and an avid runner and dance lover, who passed away last year.
“Our fundraising momentum is so great that, at our 2016 International Business Conference last week, I challenged our team members to meet 100 percent of the pledge goal in two years rather than three,” Young explains. “We are not just sending kids to camp. We are giving them the opportunity to enjoy new experiences, make new friends, discover their strengths and passions, and build the confidence to achieve their goals.”
MDA Summer Camps offer the amenities and activities of a traditional summer camp, but are designed to meet the unique physical needs of children living with muscle diseases. For many children living with these afflictions, camp is considered by them to be the best week of the year.
Over the past 35 years, ERA Real Estate has raised nearly $35 million for MDA. In 2014, ERA introduced a new branding campaign designed to energize the network, and simultaneously, a renewed dedication to the cause. Recently, ERA has been recognized for its ERA MDA Summer Camp Challenge by the PR News CSR Awards and the Ragan Communications CSR Employee Communications awards.
For more information, visit www.era.com.
