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Jacksonville Magazine’s 2020 ‘Companies with Heart’
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (February 27, 2020) — app, a fully integrated firm focused on design, engineering, construction and mechanical services worldwide, has been named one of Jacksonville Magazine’s 2020 “Companies with Heart.” This is the sixth time app has received the designation since 2014.
The “Companies with Heart” award program recognizes local businesses that contribute to nonprofits and give their employees the time and opportunities to improve the communities where they work and live.
In 2019, app’s charitable arm, The app Foundation, donated time, money and resources to more than 60 charitable organizations across the First Coast.
“app is celebrating our 35th anniversary as a company this year, and we are proud to call Jacksonville home,” said Mike Santarone, app’s CEO. “Giving back and building up this community has always been at the heart of who we are as a company, and we look forward to continuing that tradition.”
Supporting organizations that do good
app was the title sponsor of the 5th Annual Run for Heroes in Jacksonville. To date, the event has raised more than $60,000 to support trauma injury prevention and community education at UF Health Jacksonville, which is home to the only adult and pediatric Level I trauma center in Northeast Florida and Southeast Georgia. Most recently, funds supported Stop the Bleed training and bleeding control kits for local area schools as well as first responder training courses. A team of app employees also fundraised and participated in the race.
One of app’s most notable programs is The app Academy of Engineering at Nease High School, which provides students with a foundation of skills, knowledge and experience in engineering through coursework, guest lectures and course-specific field trips. app also donates two $1,000 scholarships to graduating seniors from the academy each year. The success of the program has grown to the point that 20 percent of eligible Jacksonville students now opt to attend the academy over their neighborhood school.
As part of the company’s “Believe in the Jeans” program, app employees can donate to wear jeans on Fridays, with proceeds benefiting a different charity each quarter. In the last year alone, this initiative raised approximately $15,000 for charities including:
Brooks Rehabilitation Foundation
Tesori Family Foundation
Children of Fallen Patriots
Hope Town Rising
The YMCA Tiger Academy is a charter school program in Northwest Jacksonville that provides full days of learning, as well as before and after school care for Pre-K to 5th grade students. In 2019, app employees donated backpacks and bags of school supplies to students for the new school year.
app is also proud to support the Healthy Kids Running Series, a five-week running program for local children from Pre-K to 8th grade. The events are designed to get kids active, experience accomplishment and lay the foundation for a healthy lifestyle. app employees volunteer for the events and help promote it within the community.
Providing for those in need
For the past several years, a team of app volunteers has helped prepare and serve a delicious holiday meal, decorate and provide holiday gifts for children at the I.M. Sulzbacher Center. In 2019, app had 25 employees who volunteered, which is the maximum allowed by the Center.
In 2019, app employees gifted a company-record 70 Thanksgiving food baskets to local families in need at Community Hospice, providing the families with gift cards and non-perishable food items to complete a Thanksgiving dinner.
The company donated presents to 50 children and families at Community PedsCare, a pediatric palliative and hospice program for children with life-limiting and life-threatening conditions. app also donated $1,000 to the organization’s 2019 “Halloween Doors and More” event.
Each quarter, app organizes a team of about 15-20 volunteers to work on a new home or remodel in support of Habitat for Humanity in Jacksonville. Tasks from the most recent renovation project included painting the inside of a home, repairing bathroom walls, remodeling the front porch and landscaping the yard.
app also regularly supports local hospitals, colleges and universities, and has donated thousands of dollars through the company’s Employee Match Program.
About app
app is a fully integrated design, engineering, construction, refrigeration and mechanical services firm serving commercial, industrial and public sector markets across the United States and around the world. More than 750 app employees worldwide design, build and maintain award-winning food processing plants, refrigerated warehouses, distribution centers, commercial buildings and military facilities. In addition to its Jacksonville, Florida, headquarters, app operates support locations and offices throughout the United States. app also serves Central and South America, Europe and India. For more information, visit stellar.net.