The Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) announced its support of local Milwaukee-area organizations. AEM supports charities by using funds from cancelled events that were to take place during the Democratic National Convention. Because COVID-19 impacted in-person events, AEM made the decision to use the funds previously slated for the convention. They are using the funds to both purchase and donate gift cards to non-profit organizations throughout the Milwaukee area.
AEM gave the first donation to the Street Angels. The Street Angels is a small non-profit organization that focuses on homelessness in the greater Milwaukee area. The gift cards are to be a part of their weekly community outreach efforts to feed the homeless also.
“These gift certificates will literally mean the difference between whether or not someone is able to eat during a day. We cannot thank you all at AEM enough,” said Eva Welch, Co-Founder and Director of Street Angels. “Sadly, with the lack of adequate shelter space in our community, Street Angels sees anywhere from 100-200 people sleeping on the streets each night that we are out. Thanks to the support from AEM and other community members, we can at least ensure the folks we see will not go to sleep wet and hungry. ”
How the funds will be used
In total 200, $50 gift cards from Glass & Griddle will be distributed throughout the community in 2020. Additional non-profits that will be receiving cards this year include:
- Tandem 2020 – a restaurant turned after school program for students to receive one-on-one homework help and a free meal.
- The Guest House of Milwaukee – Relying on many volunteers, to leverages their resources to help prevent homelessness and provides education and health services.
- Urban Ecology Center – Provides outdoor science education for urban youth while protecting and using public natural areas, making them safe, accessible and vibrant.
- Journey House
“It is an honor to be able to showcase the dedication of numerous volunteers and organizations in our local community and be able to say – ‘thank you’”, says Dennis Slater, President of AEM. “Throughout this pandemic, these volunteers continue to work tirelessly to provided needed services to our community. This is just one way we can recognize their dedication.”
About AEM
AEM is the North America-based international trade group representing off-road equipment manufacturers and suppliers. They have more than 1,000 companies and more than 200 product lines in the agriculture and construction-related industry sectors worldwide. The equipment manufacturing industry in the United States supports 2.8 million jobs. Additionally, it contributes roughly $288 billion to the economy every year.
