Blog Updates

My wife and I had the incredible opportunity to spend a week as camp counselors to kids aged 15-18 at Higher Ground Summer Camp in the gorgeous BlueRidge Mountains, just a few miles from Asheville, NC.  The camp is a non-denominational Christian Camp that takes 136 kids from all socio-economic statuses and backgrounds (inner city to the farms), takes them out of their natural day to day elements and comforts of life (no technology, no phones, no internet, no social media websites, no texting) and helps them begin laying the foundations to make better life choices and to start developing social and leadership skills.

Through activities like water-polo, paintball,  climbing walls, archery, riflery, high ropes courses, low ropes and team building courses, arts and crafts along with a bunch of different sports they learn goal setting skills; the importance of teamwork and sportsmanship along with understanding how important it is to ‘play their positions’, accomplish their tasks and build trust and meaningful friendships.

How do you know when you’ve got the formula for an incredible week of fun, learning and building lifetime memories?  Just 4 days after camp finished, next years camp has less than 10 spots available….that’s how badly kids want to get into and return to the Higher Ground Camp experience.

Lessons I learned for the week:

–           Camp is not for ‘old’ fat men…….(I’ll be working on the weight thing for next year) 🙂

–           9 year olds can run circles around me in Capture the Flag

–           Hitting me in Paint Ball wars, is like ‘throwing a bucket of wheat at a barn door’

–          While it’s fun to ‘shake and bake’ in capture the flag – stay on your feet……..cause a broken rib or severely bruised ribs (whichever I have)….hurt like hell

–          It’s amazing how much a person will open up and share their life with you at 2am in the morning when they know you care

–          1 week of intense fun and learning can make a HUGE difference in the life a teenager

It’s a week of magic and I can’t wait for 2012!!

As a sign of our appreciation and support of Mike & Carla’s generosity, Corporate Visions has awarded Mike two paid volunteer days for the time spent with the kids at Higher Ground Summer Camp.

In support of rider, Tamera Finley, Mike has made a generous contribution to this organization’s event taking place November 18-19, 2011.  The riders will bike 165 miles from Miami to Key West, Florida.

The SMART Ride began as a dream to create a bicycle event where 100% of pledges raised could go back to the communities to be used for direct services. That was over eight years ago, and so far $2.6 million dollars have been raised. 100% has been given back to the communities we serve to assist with direct services for individuals infected or affected by HIV/AIDS.

To help support Mike’s cause visit http://www.thesmartride.org/8/pledge/

As a sign of our appreciation and support of Mike’s generosity, Corporate Visions has made a matching contribution to the SMART Ride 8 .

Jeannie continues to make a difference in the lives of others by a recent donation to Girl Effect. As a sign of our appreciation and support of Jeannie’s generosity, Corporate Visions has made a matching contribution to the Girl Effect.

To learn more watch the empowering video at:

http://www.girleffect.org/video

If you would like to make a similar donation you can do so by searching Girl Effect at www.GlobalGiving.org.

Ronald McDonald House:

When your child is in hospital – especially with chronic or life threatening illnesses or injuries, whether it be for a short or long term stay, as a parent, you want to be by your child’s side helping them, supporting them and encouraging them. Unfortunately, for many people, they don’t have the financial where-with-all to stay in expensive hotels for all of that time. It can be a tremendous financial and emotional burden on families during already incredibly difficult times.
The Ronald McDonald House is a fantastic organization that provides housing, meals, support and counseling for families that find themselves in this type of situation. They charge nominal fees (it’s virtually free) for families to stay at their facilities and receive the support and help they need….for as long as they need.

Each Ronald McDonald House relies heavily on local charitable support from the community to keep it going…which is why the Miller family loves to support this charity.

In Service – The Miller Family

As a sign of our appreciation and support of the Miller family’s generosity, Corporate Visions has made a matching contribution to the Ronald McDonald House Charities.

“Caliente for the Cure” is a fund raiser to support Breast Cancer Research along with the Susan G. Komen group.  Barbara’s heartfelt contribution directly supported the event held on June 10, 2011.

Corporate Visions would like to thank Barbara for her generosity.  As a sign of our appreciation and support, Corporate Visions has made a matching donation to Caliente for the Cure .

A note from Paul to the CVI Power Foundation:

On behalf of so many folks that I know continue to struggle in the aftermath of these storms, thank you so very much.  As I have said before, I feel incredibly blessed to be part of a team that has such a heart for helping others.

– Paul

Corporate Visions would like to thank Paul for for the generosity shown by him and his family.  As a sign of our appreciation and support, Corporate Visions has made a matching donation to the Samaritans Purse.

Barbara’s gift funds the mission of the American Diabetes Association: to prevent and cure diabetes and to improve the lives of all people affected by diabetes. Her gift will support the delivery of services to hundreds of communities as well as education, advocacy and research projects.

This contribution went directly to the 10th Annual South Central Texas Tour de Cure which took place on June 2nd, 2011.  Thank you to rider Mike Boudreaux for the opportunity to support you.

Corporate Visions would like to thank Barbara for her generosity.  As a sign of our appreciation and support, Corporate Visions has made a matching donation to the Tour de Cure.

Mike has made a personal contribution to this event in support of Brenda Van der Steen, a rider in the July 23 – 25 event in support of MCADD.

Below is a link to her webpage:

Brenda Van der Steen – Courage Classic 2011

What is MCADD? Click Here>>

Corporate Visions would like to thank Mike for his generosity.  As a sign of our appreciation and support, Corporate Visions has made a matching donation to the Courage Classic 2011.

In addition to her personal contribution to the Northern Nevada Children’s Cancer Foundation Barbara also volunteered her time at the June 3rd – 4th Reno-Tahoe Odyssey; a fundraiser for this organization.

Corporate Visions would like to thank Barbara for the generous gift of both time and money.  As a sign of our appreciation and support, Corporate Visions has made a matching donation to the NNCCF.

A note to the CVI Power Foundation,

Thank you once again for your donation to Sustainable Tahoe and the 2011 TahoeExpo. Your investment in ST helps to spotlight and connect models of success in Lake Tahoe environmental and economic sustainability. With each donation, you’re proving your commitment to creating an environment where the public, organizations and businesses profit from protecting your surroundings.

– Cary Crites