Melanie Atkinson Receives Community Impact Honor.

To celebrate its 50th year in business and the company’s philanthropic mission, Smith & Associates will be awarding a quarterly Community Impact Award to an associate who goes above and beyond in helping others. Their first Community Impact Award recognizes Melanie Atkinson for her efforts in running the Westchase Charitable Foundation’s, “Woman of the Year” event.

For 8 weeks, the candidates for Woman of the Year raise money through sponsorships, fundraising events, raffle ticket sales, and in-kind donations. The mission of the Westchase Charitable Foundation is to provide financial support to local families that are going through major medical treatments for a child or a parent or for people that are struggling due to a tragic event. Their motto is Families Helping Families.

Smith & Associates became a major sponsor of the event and helped Atkinson reach her fundraising goal. She raised over $30,000 for the Westchase Charitable Foundation to help families in need. Atkinson poured her creative energy into the fundraising efforts and created a 24-hour YouTube Live feed where she talked to fellow professionals, friends and family members in what could be described as a modern-day Telethon.

“Nominated to head this event by one of my fellow Smith agents, Nancy Wood, I was excited to be involved with an organization that does so much to help our community and I wanted to increase the Foundation’s exposure outside of the Westchase area. Being recognized by my company and acknowledged by my peers, is the icing on the cake and one of the reasons I love to work for an organization that cares about how we, as people, are paying it forward,” says Atkinson.

The Westchase Charitable Foundation raised a record amount during the event of over $128,000.