351 Greater Boston nonprofits gifted $563,000 through Cummings Community Giving

Boston, MA Three hundred fifty-one Boston-area nonprofits were surprised with a collective $563,000 in funding courtesy of Cummings Properties’ Cummings Community Giving program. This annual initiative invites employees of the Woburn-based commercial real estate firm to each select a local charity to receive a $1,000 donation.

Every organization may be selected by up to five staff members per cycle, for a total of $5,000. This year, 21 recipients reached the $5,000 maximum, including Beverly Bootstraps, Boston Children’s Hospital, Great Dog Rescue New England, James L. McKeown Boys and Girls Club of Woburn, Marlborough Fire Department, Shriners Hospital for Children, and Saugus Pop Warner.

 In 2020, Cummings employees directed funds to nonprofits in 100 cities and towns across the Commonwealth.

“The personal connections make this program special,” said Dennis Clarke, Cummings Properties chairman and CEO. “Every full-time colleague, regardless of seniority, has an opportunity to help a local cause that means a great deal to him or her.”

Cummings executive project leader Brian Murrihy designated his $1,000 check to local homeless shelter Pine Street Inn, at the recommendation of his family. 

“We all had a talk, and it was actually my son and daughter who suggested we use this opportunity to help people facing homelessness,” said Murrihy. “So many people are just one or two missed bills away from homelessness, and a startling number of folks who end up at Pine Street Inn simply hit a bump in the road of life. Being able to help them with Cummings’ support is a wonderful feeling.” 

Cummings Community Giving is open to employees of Cummings Properties as well as its affiliated retirement communities, New Horizons at Choate in Woburn and New Horizons at Marlborough. Colleagues with a decade or more with the company are given the option to select two organizations for $1,000 each.

In recent years, the program has expanded to include longtime leasing clients, Cummings Foundation volunteers, and other friends of the Cummings organization. These groups made their selections earlier in the year.

Now in its ninth year, Cummings Community Giving has resulted in more than $3 million in donations to area nonprofits.