MDG Gives Back – Fall Recap
Written by: Kristy Buttermore
We look forward to Fall not only for the (slightly) cooler weather it brings, but also because it ushers in a season of giving through local charity events. It has been a busy couple of months for our team!
In September, our team supported the 2nd annual ASCE Top Golf Tournament. For over a decade, the ASCE Jax branch has hosted an annual fundraiser to support future engineers. Our team was joined by a UNF student for a great night of competitive fun at Top Golf.
We also sponsored the ACE Clay Shoot. Our team is heavily involved in the ACE Mentor Program of Northeast Florida, an after-school program on a mission to excite, enlighten, and inspire high school students to pursue careers in architecture, construction, and engineering through mentoring and continued financial support to their advancement to the industry. That same evening, we had the opportunity to attend the LEAD Spirits & Sports Cars event at Art ‘n Motion. Our team enjoyed sampling local spirits while supporting Flagler College’s Leading, Empowering, Advancing, and Developing (LEAD) Fund, which was established to support young men at Flagler College (a historically all-women school) through scholarships, mentorship, and leadership training.
October brought the Classic Car Museum’s Michael Riley Day. We were honored to help support this event, which benefitted retired disabled firefighter Michael Riley, who was critically injured in the line of duty, as well as honored all First Responders in our community for their dedicated support they provide all of us.
We were a first-time sponsor for the Flagler Health Care Foundation’s Skeet Shoot for the Heart, which benefits the Cardiovascular Care Fund. Our team had a great time at this tournament for a great cause. We were also a first-time sponsor for #GetNaked Jax, which supports the Melanoma Research Foundation’s early detection campaign designed to raise awareness about melanoma and the importance of being proactive.
We had the opportunity to support two INK! events this fall – the Jailbreak 5k, and the Women’s Match Play Pro-Am Charity Golf Tournament. The Jailbreak 5k invites runners to make the escape from the Old Town Jail to Vilano Beach. It was a beautiful morning as a group of our teammates made the run to support this great cause. The charity golf tournament paired a team of our coworkers with a professional female golfer to compete in a scramble event. MDG is a continuous sponsor of INK! (Investing in Kids), which helps fund programs and classroom resources for St. Johns County public school students. We were thrilled to bring home the championship trophy for our team’s combined effort for the two events!
It was our 7th year sponsoring the Davidson Cares Clay Day, which supports Northeast Florida organizations that are committed to enriching the lives of families and children. This year’s event raised more than $101,000 for five organizations to continue their incredible work for our First Coast community
Throughout October, Sheriff Hardwick’s Haunted Jail brought some Halloween freight to the community, and we were excited to help support this fun experience! Closing out the month, the 4th Annual Palencia Witches Ride for Childhood Illnesses took flight, raising over $13,500 to support Dreams Come True of Jacksonville. This organization is the First Coast’s only locally-based wish granting program and 100% of all donations go directly towards dream fulfillment. MDG was the top sponsor for this year’s event.
We kicked off November with Alpha-Omega Miracle Home’s Blue Jean Bash. We are passionate about supporting this organization through sponsorship and providing engineering work for their expanding campus. Alpha Omega supports young mothers in need by providing safe housing, medical and dental care, food and clothing, and supports their growth through aiding in securing employment and furthering their education.
That weekend our team also participated in Pink Up the Pace. Due to the rescheduled date, much of our group couldn’t make it in person and opted to participate virtually, but we are always proud to be a part of this event that not only helps those fighting breast cancer, but also helps support families as they take on that battle together.
We will wrap up the fall with our upcoming annual Can-struction Food Drive, which benefits Pie in the Sky, an incredible organization that supports low-income seniors in our community with food deliveries brought right to their door. Our offices are divided into three teams and challenged with creating a themed build with their teams’ donations. MDG supports each team with over 125 donated food items. We cannot wait to see what each team creates!
We’d like to thank all our teammates that participated in these events and share the spirit of community, which is one of our core values. We have a lot to look forward to as the holiday season approaches, and we are continuously grateful for these opportunities to support and give back to our community.
