This year on National Philanthropy Day, a few of us at Gard had the pleasure of attending the Oregon chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals’ annual Philanthropy Awards luncheon.
Our president, Brian Gard, and friend of the firm and executive secretary of the Oregon State Building & Construction Trades Council, John Mohlis, received an award for Outstanding Volunteer Fundraisers of the Year.
Brian and John were recognized with this award due to their efforts as co-chairs of Unite for the Knight – a coalition of Oregon businesses and union locals working together to raise money for OHSU’s Knight Cancer Challenge. With the help of an outstanding committee of Oregon’s community leaders, Unite for the Knight raised almost one million dollars towards the Challenge.
Over the course of a year, Brian and John have been deeply involved in the project. Recently, they jointly authored an “In My Opinion” op-ed piece that ran in The Oregonian suggesting that the Unite for the Knight model – business and labor working together in Oregon – should be applied to other issues to further the common good.
The team at Gard pitched in pro bono by designing and producing the website and coordinating and promoting numerous events. Defeating cancer is a cause we can all support, and we’re proud to see the work recognized.