Being in a community and being part of a community are not necessarily the same thing.
That’s why MacKenzie Forsberg takes the opportunity every year to give back and encourage participation within her community.
“Every holiday season, we try to do a charity event that incorporates team building so the connection to the community is more meaningful than financial fundraising,” Forsberg said. “It gets our entire staff and operation involved and brings everyone together within the organization and connected to the community.”
Forsberg is the chief operating officer of Genesis Realty Group LLC., a real estate firm that has approximately 2,500 rent-stabilized units in the Bronx, and a member of the Community Housing Improvement Program (CHIP).
This January, Genesis teamed up with E.J. York Inc., a local Bronx-based general contractor, and packed 200 hygiene kits, which they then donated to the Mercy Center, a non-profit community center that serves underprivileged families, especially women and children.
“My family is involved with this center because our church donates turkeys to the center during the holidays,” Forsberg said. “We did not select this organization at random; our hearts and resources have been invested here for years now. It’s in the Bronx, and a lot of the properties we manage are here. It’s something we’re already connected to.”
For the center, having local organizations get involved shows its members that they are not alone out there.
“Mercy Center serves 3,000 of the Bronx’s most vulnerable residents so we are very grateful for the generosity of Genesis and E.J. York,” said Steve Stritch, the executive director of the Mercy Center. “Our participants were thrilled to receive the packages and we were glad to play a role in distributing them. What a wonderful resource for our community!”
The hygiene kits included bars of Dove soap, toothpaste and a toothbrush, wet wipes, lotion and other items that could be used for adults and children.
“We thought toiletry bags would be great, especially because this center services a lot of women and families,” Forsberg said. “Toiletries are critical to people who need a fresh start.”
About 20 team members participated in the packaging in December and delivery in mid-January.
Other recent charity events include breakfast packages for a senior center food pantry, alleviating rental costs for the Muslim Women’s Institute for Research and Development food pantry with other members of CHIP, and turkey donations.
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