More than 60 volunteers from BrightView donated their skills, time, and resources to transform the campus at St. Stephen's Community House, an organization that advances the self-sufficiency of residents in the Columbus region by providing services in workforce development, social development, counseling, an urban garden program, a bike loan program, and education and after school childcare. 

BrightView team members enhanced the landscape, built raised planter beds, and constructed new benches and tables to create an environment that will enable St. Stephen's to fulfill its mission of Brightening Lives. In addition to these projects, BrightView will be providing St. Stephen's with an in-kind donation by installing an irrigation system and new pathways for St. Stephen's community garden, Project AquaStar, valued at over $30,000. 

"Our teams across the region are very inspired by the work St. Stephen's is doing so we decided to rally together and lend our skills to give back," said BrightView Vice President and General Manager Glenn Popieski. 

BrightView is also working with St. Stephen's Learn to Succeed program to provide workforce training and job opportunities in the Linden community. At the event, BrightView announced that they will be providing participants of the program with full-time employment for the summer. The participants will work alongside BrightView teams based out of their East Columbus branch. 

It is because of partners like BrightView that our doors stay open and families find comfort and hope here. This project has transformed our campus and their donations will allow us to expand Project AquaStar and provide more services to our community. 

- Michelle Mills, CEO of St. Stephen's Community House

"We seek to forge long-term strategic partnerships with community organizations in our local markets to provide jobs and career pathways," said BrightView Vice President of Human Resources Jeff Robinson. "The opportunity to partner with St. Stephen's and contribute to their mission of Brightening Lives in our community is something we are all proud to be a part of."

At the June 17 event, Columbus City Council presented BrightView and St. Stephen's Community House with a Certificate of Recognition, highlighting the impactful work the partnership has generated for the Greater Columbus Region. 

"It is because of partners like BrightView that our doors stay open and families find comfort and hope here," said CEO of St. Stephen's Michelle Mills. "This project has transformed our campus and their donations will allow us to expand Project AquaStar and provide more services to our community." 

For BrightView, this project is an extension of a partnership with St. Stephen's Community House that began in December 2015, when the company donated over two tons worth of food to St. Stephen's food nutrition center, a key community resource that serves over 1,700 residents per month. BrightView's employees take pride in being a part of such an inspiring cause. 

"At BrightView, we believe it is important to invest in the communities in which we live and work," said BrightView's Executive Vice President of Public Affairs, Marketing and Communications Rick Martella. "'Taking Care of Communities' is a core component of our brand and something we proudly do every day."

For photos of the BrightView Volunteer Day, click here.

More than 1,000 people in Newport Beach, Calif., attended the unveiling of a statue July 6 honoring fallen lifeguard Benjamin Carlson. Carlson died two years ago while saving the life of a man who was in distress. The Ben Carlson Memorial Statue was installed by BrightView’s Orange County and San Diego Development teams led by Cruz Diaz, Phillip Germann, and Jonathan Fabry.

Ben Carlson was the first lifeguard to die in the line of duty in the Newport Beach Lifeguard Department’s 100-year history. His actions have earned four Medals of Valor, a letter from the President, and a dedication from the city of Newport Beach with the naming of the Benjamin M. Carlson Lifeguard Headquarters, located just steps from the new statue. The statue is constructed of marine-grade stainless steel.

Jake Janz, the artist who designed and fabricated the statue and Ben’s brother-in-law, reached out to Lifescapes International and the BrightView Development Team. Together, they donated more than $100,000 in materials and labor to the project. BrightView teams managed the procurement of materials, securing permits, and an electrical contractor and consultants to review the design and installation. Over the last two weeks, BrightView teams performed the staging, demolition, irrigation, concrete and stone paving, and plaque installation.

“The story behind this project was a great inspiration to our teams,” said Diaz, General Superintendent at BrightView Landscape Development. “We do a lot of work in the Newport Beach area so the opportunity to lend our expertise to help memorialize a hero who means so much to this community was really something special.”

The Ben Carlson Memorial & Scholarship Foundation believes this statue is not only a tribute to Ben’s heroism for the community of Newport Beach, but also a sign of respect to all lifeguards. Members of the Carlson family also thanked the BrightView teams and were honored by the level of sophistication that went into the project.

“Our teams could not have been more proud of their work that honors a hero who gave his life in the line of duty,” said Germann, Senior Vice President of BrightView Landscape Development. “This was a great opportunity to take care of the community where we have worked and played for many years.”

The story behind this project was a great inspiration to our teams. We do a lot of work in the Newport Beach area so the opportunity to lend our expertise to help memorialize a hero who means so much to this community was really something special.
- Cruz Diaz, General Superintendent at BrightView Landscape Development

More than 100 volunteers from BrightView Landscape Services company donated their skills, time and resources to transform Miracle Manor, a newly renovated 28,000-square-foot, 12-unit apartment complex that provides homes to families at risk of homelessness while their child is receiving treatment at CHOC children’s hospital.

Miracle Manor is the newest endeavor from Miracles for Kids, a non-profit organization that provides financial aid, health, wellness and advocacy services to families in Southern California with children battling life threatening illnesses. Thanks to this project and donations from other community partners, Miracle Manor’s renovations, valued at more than $1 million, are being completed at minimal cost to the organization. 

“When I was introduced to the Miracle Manor project, I was instantly inspired and we decided to rally together our teams across the region to support this endeavor,” said BrightView Vice President Chuck DeGarmo.

DeGarmo and his Southern California regional teams quickly united to create the exterior design for a colorful, safe and healing landscape. Local BrightView teams then sourced all of the materials and donated their time to provide instillation services. 

“Fighting a life-threatening illness requires an immense time commitment and often results in depleted savings or income loss,” said Autumn Strier, CEO of Miracles for Kids. “Thanks to the generosity of community partners like BrightView, Miracle Manor will provide these families with not just housing stability but also convenient access to CHOC children’s hospital and a family-friendly community during their time of need.”

In addition to their pro-bono services, BrightView volunteers completed final touches on the landscape and prepared each apartment unit by building furniture, decorating kitchens, cleaning the interior and assembling welcome baskets filled with basic essentials for families moving in at the end of the month. BrightView’s Design Team  also designed a 170-foot mural, depicting a day in the life at Miracle Manor, which teams painted during their volunteer day.

The first five Miracle Manor families moved in this past December, and an additional seven families are now able to move in upon completion this April, bringing Miracle Manor to 100-percent occupancy.

For BrightView, this project is an extension of a partnership with Miracle for Kids that began in early 2015. The company held a previous volunteer day with over 60 employees last December to install phase one of the landscape and prepare the first five units. BrightView’s employees also held a gift drive to fulfill holiday wish lists for the over 200 families that Miracles for Kids supports across the region.

“It’s inspiring to have the opportunity to utilize our skills to support our community,” DeGarmo said. “The work done here at Miracle Manor is humbling to everyone involved and as a company we will continue our commitment to take care of our communities by lending our expertise.”

Thanks to the generosity of community partners like BrightView, Miracle Manor will provide these families with not just housing stability but also convenient access to CHOC children’s hospital and a family-friendly community during their time of need.
- Autumn Strier, CEO of Miracles for Kids

At Centro Campesino Farmworker Center, volunteers from BrightView Landscapes volunteered time and resources to transform the exterior of the soon-to-open Education Center, which will serve farmworkers and other low income families living in the Homestead and Florida City communities of rural Miami-Dade County.  

Centro Campesino’s new Education Center will include two classrooms and a computer lab. This addition will increase their capacity to serve an additional 40 children in their after school program, provide weekend and evening classes, conduct computer trainings and orchestrate community meetings.

The partnership between BrightView and Centro Campesino is part of an effort to collaborate and develop a workforce development and job training program. 

“We seek to forge long-term strategic partnerships with community organizations in our local markets to provide jobs and career pathways,” said BrightView Vice President of Human Resources Ralph Acevedo. “While discussing the potential of a job training program, we learned of Centro Campesino’s new Education Center and became inspired by the opportunity to utilize our skills to support our community.”

This project that BrightView has undertaken is truly a blessing. We had run out of funds to complete the building and work was at a standstill. Their huge contribution has inspired us to complete the interior and start using the building.
- Ana Castilla, Centro Campesino Board President and TD Banks Community Development Manager

BrightView provided in-kind support of specialized landscape design and installation for the center’s exterior as they prepare to open their doors later this year. Today, team members from local branches participated in volunteer activities to help put the final touches on the landscaping and also built benches, picnic tables, and flowerbeds to transform the property. 

“At BrightView, we believe it is not only our responsibility, but a privilege to give back to the communities in which we live and work,” said Rick Martella, BrightView’s Executive Vice President of Public Affairs, Marketing and Communications. “‘Taking Care of Communities’ is a core component of our brand and something we proudly do every day.” 

“This project that BrightView has undertaken is truly a blessing," said Ana Castilla, TD Banks Community Development Manager and Centro Campesino’s Board President. "We had run out of funds to complete the building and work was at a standstill. Their huge contribution has inspired us to complete the interior and start using the building." 

For BrightView, this project is the initial activity for their partnership with Centro Campesino. “We want to stay involved and continue to explore job training opportunities and volunteer activities to support the economic development of the community,” Acevedo said.

About Centro Campesino

Centro Campesino has been serving the Southern Miami/Dade County since 1972. Our importance to the community was never clearer than after Hurricane Andrew destroyed most of the existing homes in 1992. We have developed more than 500 units of affordable housing, and still manage 131 residences for senior citizens and other low and moderate income people. Since that time of intense rebuilding, Centro Campesino has continued to be a mainstay in the community, providing home owner and home buyer assistance, vocational services, and an afterschool program for children. For more information, visit www.centrocampesino.org.

Bonton is an isolated, disadvantaged community within the larger inner city of South Dallas. More than 40 percent of the Bonton population lives below the poverty line and 65 percent have failed to complete high school. Opportunities to advance in Bonton are rare and so is fresh, affordable, healthy food. Together, BrightView and its non-profit partners wanted to change that.

Working alongside nonprofits such as H.I.S. BridgeBuilders and Reach4Hope, the BrightView team dug in — literally — transforming an empty lot into an urban farm where Bonton residents can grow their own food.

The work didn't stop there. BrightView Tree Care and Landscape Maintenance teams donated their time, equipment, and manpower to clean up and beautify public spaces. 

To help encourage the Bonton youth to adopt a healthy lifestyle, BrightView donated hundreds of bicycles and built a bike trail in the community. To promote job growth, BrightView and H.I.S. Bridge Builders initiated a job training and recruitment program where residents can build skills and gain employment. Throughout it all, BrightView is helping to create a more economically viable community, creating jobs and beautiful environments which builds pride.

Hope is growing and opportunities are increasing in Bonton. It's an ongoing process and BrightView is committed to staying involved. As one resident said, "We dream of seeing restoration. We dream of seeing families restored and what I see in this community now and in this farm is that dream."