LAFAYETTE, La.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The generosity of two small children has inspired others to donate thousands of dollars to help Louisiana flood victims.
Johnette Romero, who lost everything in Hurricane Ike in 2008, told her family how important it was to help people displaced by floods in Abbeville, Louisiana, where she lives and works. She came home from work one day to find her seven-year-old daughter A’mya Smith and four-year-old son Day'von Smith gathering a huge bin of toys for kids who lost their own playthings in the August floods.
“It’s wonderful that they thought of that,” says Romero. “They just did it on their own. We told them, ‘Let’s go find where these kids are!’” The family drove to a hotel where many evacuees were staying. The children brought the desk clerk to tears when they told her who the donations were for.
A’mya and Day'von’s selflessness inspired Romero’s employer, CFLane, to pitch in as well.
“If they can do it, then so can we,” thought Alan Walsh, Senior Vice President of Human Resources. The firm offered associates who donated more than $20 each the opportunity to enter a drawing for paid time off (PTO).
More than 200 employees gave $7,100. The firm matched $5,000 of that for a total of $12,100. The funds are going to Second Harvest Food Bank, a group dedicated to fighting hunger in South Louisiana. The nonprofit is distributing thousands of pounds of food, water and supplies to flood victims and the agencies helping them.
“Last year we raised money through associate contributions for the State of South Carolina,” Walsh says. “We wanted to do it again for Louisiana.”
Eight CFLane associates each won a day off in the drawing. The company also awarded PTO to the property manager and regional property manager whose areas raised the most donations.
Anyone interested in donating can contact the Second Harvest Food Bank through its website: http://no-hunger.org. To view a video of the CFLane donations, click here.
About CFLane
Headquartered in Atlanta, GA, CFLane is a vertically integrated multifamily real estate firm. The company is a subsidiary of Cocke Finkelstein, Inc. (CFI), which acquired Atlanta based Lane Company in 2013 and merged operations. With decades of multifamily industry experience amongst the team, they have evolved into a leading provider of multifamily services including property management, asset management, and consulting.
With management in excess of 30,000 units, CFLane’s service areas include 14 states nationwide. With expertise in affordable, conventional and student housing, CFLane successfully manages various holdings in multiple arenas of real estate. To learn more, please visit www.cflane.com.
