In June 2011, Atec sponsored a clothing drive for Second Mile Mission Center, a charity local to the Stafford/Sugar Land area. More than 40 Atec employees contributed over 300 items of clothing, many of them items for children, for donation to the area’s less fortunate to make the drive a success. The clothing drive, coordinated by Atec HR Manager Meghan Major, was a close to home, close to the heart effort that is sure to become an annual tradition.
Atec’s Chairman and CEO, Howard Lederer, is a native Houstonian with deep community roots. Mr. Lederer chairs two significant 501c3 local charities, HoustonWorks USA and Project Joy and Hope.
HoustonWorks is a large agency. Its 250 employees operate eight centers, assisting 500,000 residents in over 1,000,000 annual encounters focused on employment, training and support services. HoustonWorks USA has the unique distinction of being recognized twice nationally as best agency of its type by the National Alliance of Business and the US Department of Labor. On October 13, 2011, Mr. Lederer was presented with the Founder Award at the HoustonWorks Gala at the Hilton Americas in downtown Houston.
Joy and Hope labors to help the families of children with life-limiting illnesses. The agency offers housing assistance; emergency loans; college scholarships for striving, surviving siblings; mother’s retreats; a holiday gift program; a parent-to-parent 24 hour support line, and hosts the Texas Pediatric Palliative Care Consortium.
Howard Lederer serves as director of the Christus Foundation For Healthcare, which provides childcare services for disadvantaged Houstonians. Mr. Lederer was also a long time board member of the University of St. Thomas, and currently serves on its Fine Arts Advisory Committee.
In Decemeber 2011, Atec’s employees came together for our annual USMC Toys for Tots campaign. Atec’s full participation helps provide local at-risk kids with Christmas gifts. Our participation is so good that, for many years running, Marines have come by Atec to speak about Toys for Tots and to pick up our donated toys. This year, Sgt. Sohos (USMC) was accompanied by Dep. Sheriff Molho at Atec’s event. Atec is proud to support our Marines and area children.
Stay tuned for future blog posts as Atec participates in our community in 2012.
