GAI Chairman & CEO Gary DeJidas, PE, MBA, F. GBA discusses GAI’s corporate and employee support for Building Homes for Heroes, GAI’s 2024 corporate charity of choice. GAI matches employee donations to this U.S. veterans’ aid organization dollar-for-dollar.
Building on Our Employees’ Giving Spirit
Support for our communities through charitable giving and volunteering is a longstanding tradition for GAI and its employees. Each year, GAI designates a corporate charity of choice through our ‘iGaive’ charitable-giving program. In 2024, we continue our support for Building Homes for Heroes, a nonprofit national organization that builds or modifies existing homes and gifts them, mortgage free, to injured veterans and their families, while also providing support services to enable them to build better lives.
Building Homes for Heroes Honors Injured U.S. Veterans
Building Homes for Heroes was established in the wake of the 9/11 attack in New York City. With a mission ‘determined and devoted to bringing renewed hope to our nation’s injured veterans, first responders and their families,’ the organization aims to reach the milestone of 400 homes gifted to its beneficiaries by the end of 2024.
Building Homes for Heroes’ beneficiaries are often new and sometimes first-time homeowners. In addition to mortgage-free homes, the organization helps support the ongoing financial stability of its beneficiaries by connecting them with pro-bono financial planning services provided by partner organization the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA).
Success stories about the Building Homes for Heroes home-gifting program abound in the media. In recent news, a retired U.S. Army sergeant was gifted a brand-new, mortgage-free home in Lawrence, IN; a veteran U.S. Marine Corps corporal and veteran U.S. Army sergeant were gifted mortgage-free homes in Marshall, TX; a veteran U.S Army Green Beret chief warrant officer received a mortgage-free home in Plant City, FL; and a mortgage-free, handicap-accessible home was gifted to a veteran U.S. Air Force Pararescue master sergeant in Port St. Lucie, FL, to note just a few.
Making Good on GAI’s Commitment to Give Back
When evaluating organizations to select as our corporate charity of choice, GAI prioritizes those that can make a truly profound impact on the lives of their beneficiaries. Building Homes for Heroes has earned a four-star, 97% rating from Charity Navigator— Building Homes for Heroes’ CEO and Board members perform their duties without compensation while the organization strives to keep fundraising and administrative costs at a minimum, maximizing the percentage of the donations received that is directed to the organization’s home-gifting program.
In addition to encouraging GAI staff to reach a target donation level of $30,000 in 2024, our company makes good on a long-lived commitment to support the communities where we live, work, and play by matching employee donations dollar-for-dollar up to a total additional $30,000—adding up to a potential $60,000 donation to this visionary organization and its deserving beneficiaries.
Get to know Building Homes for Heroes and learn how your cash donations can make a profound, long-lasting impact on the lives of injured U.S. veterans and their families.
For more information about GAI’s corporate giving, contact HR Director Peg Brenner, SPHR, 321.319.3083, chairperson of GAI’s iGaive philanthropic program.
