Meeting a Need
About 650 Pacific Investment Management Co. employee volunteers, friends and family members gathered on Dec. 3 at the OC Fair & Event Center in Costa Mesa to pack 12,000 holiday meals for families in Southern California.
The PIMCO Foundation, PIMCO’s philanthropic arm, sponsored the ninth annual Share the Harvest event in Newport Beach. The boxes were donated to the Orange County Food Bank and its member agencies.
The event followed a similar one in New York City, where 230 PIMCO volunteers packed 10,152 meals for Stop Hunger Now, 1,000 lunches for Bridges Outreach, 500 grocery bags for New York Common Pantry, and 1,000 “blessing bags” for The Bowery Mission.
“These organizations are supporting the most vulnerable in our communities,” said PIMCO Chief Executive Emmanuel Roman. “Through Share the Harvest, we can do our part to get involved, give back, and make an impact.”
PIMCO’s Share the Harvest event has provided meals for 357,500 individuals in Orange County and New York City since its inception.
‘Fore’ a United Cause
United Cerebral Palsy of Orange County’s 22nd Life Without Limits Autumn Golf Classic was held on Nov. 15 at Pelican Hill Resort in Newport Coast. The event, which was sponsored by DLD Insurance Brokers, loanDepot, Nationwide Insurance, California Bank of Commerce and 4Gen Digital, drew 126 golfers and supporters.
More than $140,000 was raised, which will support the organization’s services to more than 4,300 children and families with developmental disabilities including autism, Down syndrome, cerebral palsy, developmental delay and children at risk for developing a developmental delay.
A tournament highlight was interaction with United Cerebral Palsy of OC children and families who participated as ambassadors throughout the day and served as inspirational speakers during the post-golf program.
Guiding by Example
The Child Guidance Center raised more than $160,000 to help Orange County youth and families at its 34th annual Holiday Tree Fantasy on Dec. 4 at Balboa Bay Resort in Newport Beach. Approximately 250 guests viewed designer trees, ate a gourmet luncheon, and had the chance to participate in live and silent auctions, with all proceeds going toward the center’s mental health programs and counseling services, which reach thousands of Orange County families each year.
The event also honored Michael Meyer, president and chief executive of Rate-Highway Inc., and his wife, Deepa, as the Community Star Honoree.
“As local business owners, it is important to us to give back through an organization that helps support the local community, and with Child Guidance Center, we found one that is deeply meaningful,” Meyer said. “There are few organizations that do so much for so many lives.”
Caring for Kids
The 31st annual National Philanthropy Day, hosted by the Association of Fundraising Professionals, honored individuals, businesses, and organizations that are active in the philanthropic community. This year’s event was on Nov. 17 at the City National Grove of Anaheim.
Tuttle-Click Automotive and Keith Swayne, local philanthropist and retired chief executive of Case Swayne Co./International Food Solutions, were honored for their support of the Boys & Girls Club of Laguna Beach.
The Tuttle-Click Automotive Group has supported the club’s annual Art of Giving Gala for several years, each time helping double funds raised. Longtime supporter Swayne has made several contributions to the Boys & Girls Club of Laguna Beach since becoming a board member in 2000, including co-chairing a $3.3 million capital campaign that funded the construction of a 25,000-square-foot facility.
Bits & Pieces
Hanley Investment Group Real Estate Advisors, a real estate brokerage and advisory firm specializing in the sale of retail properties, raised more than $35,000 for local nonprofits in its annual Movember campaign for a total of $157,000 over six years. … Costa Mesa-based Festival of Children Foundation, together with The Happiness Project, hosted 600 homeless children at the 10th “Sharing the Spirit Holiday Party” on Dec. 9 at South Coast Plaza, where children were treated to games, toys and more. … On Dec. 15, 650 children of the deployed from Camp Pendleton received new art supplies in a Healing Art Box, thanks to a partnership between UPS; local nonprofit group Art & Creativity for Healing; and financial support by community members.
