Windermere Offices Give Back Throughout Final Months of 2022

by Kevin Bohnert

Windermere offices throughout the Western U.S. stepped up for their neighbors in need during the final months of 2022, organizing fundraisers and clothing drives left and right. Windermere offices use the monies that they raise for the Windermere Foundation to help fund non-profit organizations that support low-income and homeless families in their communities.

The Windermere Foundation raised nearly $1 million in November and December to finish the company’s 50^th anniversary year with an outpouring of giving. Here are a few examples of the great work done by Windermere offices across the network in late 2022.

Windermere Foundation: End of 2022

Windermere Walla Walla

Many people are in need of warm clothes during winter, and organizations like the Walla Walla YWCA help provide them with the resources they need. Windermere Walla Walla directed their donation efforts this winter to the local YWCA branch, giving $3,600 to help improve the lives of the women and children in their programs. They also collected coats and seasonal supplies to help ensure that these families have their basic needs met this winter. (Pictured above)

Windermere Trails End Real Estate

The folks at Windermere Trails End in Shady Cove, Oregon also jumped at the chance to support local schools by donating nearly $800 worth of winter clothing to Shady Cove Elementary and Middle School. The office used their Foundation funds to purchase leggings, sweatpants, and boxes of new athletic shoes to ensure that students in need would have proper winter gear and warm, supportive shoes.

Shoes donated by Windermere Trails End to the students at Shady Cove Elementary and Middle School – Image Credit: Amanda Richardson

Windermere Real Estate PSK and Lake Tapps

The holiday season is a time of giving, and the Windermere Real Estate PSK and Windermere Lake Tapps offices have been shining examples of that giving spirit for quite some time. 15 years ago, after having conversations with local school counselors about how homeless students were going without proper winter gear, they met with school administrators to see how the local Windermere offices could help. The owners, agents, and staff forged a relationship with the local Fred Meyer and their annual Christmas drive for underserved elementary students in the Sumner-Bonney Lake and Kent school districts was born.

After Windermere staff, agents, and owners gather donations from local businesses, the neighborhood Fred Meyer opens an hour early on a designated day so volunteers staffing the drive can shop freely, selecting supplies like coats, hats, and gloves for children in need. This year, the offices collected $14,800 in donations, serving roughly 500 students.

Ken Freed, agent at Windermere Real Estate PSK had this to say about the clothing drive:

“I think of this every Christmas morning. Over 500 kids have something to open on Christmas day. All the families, all the teaches and their spouses, all our agents can feel they did something worthwhile and appreciated. Handwritten thank-you notes from the students and heart felt hugs and handshakes from the teachers make it even better.”

Windermere Federal Way West Campus and South Sound

The Windermere network went above and beyond in 2022, and the Windermere Federal Way West Campus and Windermere Real Estate South Sound offices in Federal Way, WA embodied that extra effort this past holiday season. These offices made several significant donations to local organizations throughout November and December, making a positive impact in their community. Here are a few notable examples:

Raised roughly $3,500 in donations to provide food and gifts to families in need at Lake Grove Elementary School. The donations supported 109 children and 40 families in total.
Donated $2,500 to Federal Way Community Caregiving Network to provide rental assistance to a family at risk of homelessness.
Because the Federal Way Senior Center is located in unincorporated county territory, the facility does not receive assistance from the neighboring towns it borders. The Federal Way offices donated $5,000 to the senior center for operating expenses to help it stay open and delivered food donations to its residents.
Windermere South Sound donated $2,500 to Fusion Federal Way and Beautiful Soles, two local organizations dedicated to providing shelter and emergency services to children and families in need.

Dozens of bags fill the hallway of Lake Grove Elementary school. They are filled with food and gifts to students in need, donated by the agents and staff at the Windermere West Campus and South Sound offices in Federal Way, Washington.

Food and gifts donated to the Lake Grove Elementary Students by West Campus and South Sound offices – Image Credit: Laurel Butler

To learn more about the Windermere Foundation, visit windermerefoundation.com. To help support programs in your community, click the donate button below.