Area realtors donate time and money to Youngstown ministry
Ready to spread some holiday cheer, members of the Youngstown Columbiana Association of Realtors and the Beaver Creek Area Association of Realtors, spent their Thursday wrapping and bagging presents that will be handed out to kids by Heartreach Neighborhood Ministries.
"The kids really need our help, there are families that need our assistance and being realtors, we're involved in the community greatly and we want to make sure we can give back the best that we can to our community," Dennis Gonatas, President of YCAR said.
Each year, the YCAR President chooses which charity association members will support with community service and donations. Dennis Gonatas, the 2022 President, chose Heartreach.
"My family have been involved with Heartreach for a long time and we really want to give back to them, it's important to us," Gonatas said.
"Planning on giving out gifts to 700 children this Christmas season but they (YCAR) have also been here to do work days, they collected coats for us, they've been fundraisers for us, it's been a great partnership," Mark Samuel, Director of Heartreach Neighborhood Ministries said.
The realtor organizations also presented a check to Heartreach for nearly $19,000. That was money raised from a golf outing and personal donations.
For Heartreach, which runs three community centers in the greater Youngstown area, the money will be used to support their after school super kids program.
"Our goal is really to help to equip them to be successful in life and we do that in a number of ways by teaching resiliency, how to set goals as well as just to give them some positive mentors and opportunities to figure out who they are, who God as created them to be," Samuel said.
If you would like to help, Heartreach Neighborhood Ministries is always looking for volunteers and donations.
"We have about 150 volunteers that work with us on a regular basis throughout the year," Samuel said. "This is our big volunteer season, so we need volunteers for Christmas in terms of just preparation, wrapping presents, getting bags ready for families and then the day of the event which will be December 17th when we're giving out the gifts to the children."
To volunteer, just call 330-744-2000 and say, "I want to help."
Gonatas hopes other businesses see what they're doing and also pitch in to help whomever they can.
"I beg of everyone to pay it forward the best that they can."
