Community Service Archive - 2020
December 2020
Anna Rosier is an 8th grader in Dublin, OH who throughout December collected items for her drive called “Our Hand to Homeless.” Anna began this drive 6 years ago when she was just 7! Over the years she has made lunches for the homeless and handed them out at the various shelters around Columbus. This year, due to COVID, she focused her efforts on collecting winter clothing and general hygiene items for women. With the support of numerous local donors she was able to collect 1,517 items this Christmas! Strata supported the drive by donating a $500 Amazon gift card to Out of Darkness, a Columbus, OH chapter of Atlanta Dream Center’s Anti-Sex Trafficking Department. The gift card will go towards helping and supporting victims of commercial sexual exploitation. We would like to recognize Anna for her selfless work during these holidays and for making a difference in so many lives.
November 2020
A huge THANK YOU to everyone that donated and helped support our inaugural Strata Financial Group 401(K)anned Food Drive. We were blown away by everyone’s generosity. We raised 754 pounds of food as well as $200 in monetary donations. That equates to 1,628 meals provided to those in need in our local community. Thanks to the Second Harvest Food Bank of North Central Ohio for handling the logistics and making sure the food gets to where it needs to go. These donations will make such a meaningful impact during this time of need for so many. Thanks again, and we really set the bar high for next year!
October 2020
For our October community service initiative, we decided to go with a Halloween theme. A few of the Strata team members went to the local American Red Cross center to donate blood. With COVID-19 cases surging and Hurricane Zeta (and other previous storms) hitting the U.S., blood donations are in extremely high demand right now. If you are interested in donating, please visit https://www.redcrossblood.org/ for more information.
September 2020
The University Hospitals Rainbow Babies Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) hosted their first annual NICU Read-A-Thon last month. The event was in honor of their beloved former NICU unit manager, Ann Reitenbach, who passed away last year after a battle with cancer. It was Ann’s dream to create a reading program for the Rainbow Babies NICU.
Strata was a proud donor for this book drive and helped make the innagural event a great success. In 10 days, a team of moms, dads, grandmas, nurses, doctors, and therapists recorded 663 reading sessions! Thanks to the UH NICU staff and all the donors who helped make this event possible.
August 2020
Strata’s office manager, Emily Dohnenko, is the President of the Parent Advisory Committee (PAC) for Park Place Early Learning Center, a 501(c) nonprofit daycare in Elyria, OH. Emily’s daughter, Livia, attends the daycare. The PAC put on a “Calendar Raffle” fundraiser for the month of August, which is a contest where people buy a calendar for a chance to win a prize every day of the month. Strata was a top 5 sponsor for the raffle, along with countless other local businesses who generously donated cash and prizes for the fundraising campaign which raised over $3,000! 100% of the proceeds will be used to purchase much needed classroom materials for the children as well as new outdoor playground equipment for the daycare.
July 2020
For Strata's July community service initiative, Kyle, Mitch, Devan, and Lynnae (Devan’s mother / Ron’s sister) volunteered at the local food bank and helped weigh and sort items that were donated as part of a food drive put on by Hooks for Hunger. As is the theme of the summer, the Hooks for Hunger fishing tournament was canceled due to COVID-19, so they decided to hold a “Fill da Boat” food drive instead. Over 2,000 pounds of food was collected for the Community Resource Services (CRS) food bank which serves as the designated emergency food pantry for Avon and Avon Lake. It was Strata’s job to help CRS weigh and sort the items so they could be distributed to local families in need.
June 2020
Our community service efforts have gotten off to a “fast” start so far – pun intended. Kyle, Mitch, Devan, and Emily participated in the Diversity Center of Northeast Ohio’s 18th Annual Walk, Rock and Run. The mission of the Diversity Center is to eliminate bias, bigotry, and racism through a number of different community programs, events, and consulting services. Due to COVID-19, the event went “virtual” this year so the team ran the 5K together after work throughout Waterford Place. Although it may seem otherwise based on the picture, we did not win the race. Nevertheless it was for a great cause and we got some nice exercise and fresh air!
May 2020
For our May community service initiative, one of our advisors, Kyle Hancharick, along with his wife (Lauren) and son (Will), participated in a virtual 5K benefitting the Down Syndrome Association of Central Ohio (DSACO). DSACO’s mission is to support families, promote community, and encourage a lifetime of opportunities for people with down syndrome.
Kyle has been involved with the Dublin, OH-based race since 2012 as one of his friends, Nick, has down syndrome. Kyle has been unable to participate since moving from Columbus to Cleveland a few years ago, but due to COVID-19, the event was changed to a “virtual” 5K this year, which allowed Kyle and Lauren to sign up and participate in their own neighborhood!