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Giving Back with Gratitude this Thanksgiving Season
As we kick off a month that is well-known for gratitude, I would like to start by thanking my wife Jill and my entire family. It is not always easy to understand the intense requirement of business. Its a packed travel schedule, long workdays and working on the weekends. For almost 25 years, Jill has supported me and Avalon Park Group. I am very thankful and do not take this for granted.
grant from Switzerland, this country has offered me everything I could ever dream about. As a young man, who barely spoke English, I arrived in Florida with the dream to build a town and find success as an entrepreneur. I was welcomed with open arms to this community, as a human being, and as a businessman. As a businessman, I learned in order to earn you have to invest.
ly thankful to be in this country where you can pursue your dream and by working hard, being honest and obeying the law you can reach all your dreams. It is not only an honor to be able to give back in thankfulness to the community which allowed me and many other entrepreneurs to be successful, but I see it as an obligation and honor to give back to the community and less fortunate. Giving for Avalon Park Group often means identifying a need and filling it.
I am thankful and glad that Avalon Park started with giving. It was the strong foundation for a great community. Without those gifts we would not have what we have today, a wonderful town, where people can live, learn, work, and play. A town where people can find a strong sense of belonging and safety. Hence giving back starts early and should never end.
Sometimes people believe Many years ago, I heard a giving is just money. I strongly disagree, there SOMETIMES PEOPLE BELIEVE are so many ways of giving back, as in time and GIVING IS JUST MONEY. I talents. I am thankful that STRONGLY DISAGREE, THERE the Avalon Park community is among the best I ARE SO MANY WAYS OF have experienced when it comes to giving time as GIVING BACK, AS IN TIME I would also like to thank volunteers in schools, at all the team members, Encore Assisted Living AND TALENTS. which I consider close community, at the service friends and family, from speech from the late Rich- Almost 20 years ago, Ava- clubs, such as the Avalon Avalon Park Group for ard DeVos, the owner of lon Park Group donated Rotary Club and Avalon their passionate, dedicatthe Magic basketball team school sites for Avalon Kiwanis Club. I admire ed, and hard work for our and billionaire entreprePark Elementary school, anybody spending time many enterprises around neur. He told his fellow funded the Timber Creek to give back, sometimes the globe. church friends in Fort high school football stadi- it is easy just to send a Lauderdale that he expeum, and built the Timber check, and much harder Additionally, I would be rienced something interCreek Bands marching to invest time and passion remised if I did not recesting. He would start to field. A high ranking when giving back. So, in ognize my appreciation give 10 % of his income Orange County Public the spirit of the season, as for Avalon Park Groups’ to the Church as required Schools school official I look to new and familbusiness friends, partners, by the Bible. However, asked me, “How can you iar ways to give back, I clients, vendors, bankers, he then decided to give afford to do all those doencourage you to do the and government entities more of his income, and nations, Avalon Park has same! we work with every day. at times to give more than barely started, and with he earned in a given year. just few homes cannot Happy Thanksgiving! Thanksgiving is the time Rich DeVos said, “The possibly be making you to look back and while do- more I donated, the more money.” By the way, my ing so, I am deeply thank- my fortune grew.” CFO also wondered what ful for the United States I was doing when “giving of America. As an immiI am fortunate and deepaway with both hands.”
