CarterBlog

City of Enid Votes to Expand Carter’s Role on Enid Renaissance Project

By Danny Jardine, senior vice president, Carter

ENID, Okla. (Nov. 28, 2011) - Enid city commissioners recently approved to appropriate $243,690 to expand Carter’s program management contract to include management of construction activities for the Enid Renaissance Project in Enid, Okla.

The Carter K-12 team is the project manager for the $24.5 million project and has acted as the city’s administrative representative for construction on the project.

An article on EnidNews.com explains Carter’s expanded duties on the project will include coordination of activities with the demolition contractor, utility contractor, event center contractor, convention hall renovation contractor and utility companies. 

The Enid Renaissance project includes the construction of a new multipurpose events center, which will contain an exhibit, concert and multipurpose sports arena. Carter is also completing the renovations to the existing convention hall that will house three large ballrooms that can accommodate 800 guests, a new full service kitchen and 10 meeting rooms.

Carter has provided a valued service to the citizens of Enid for almost two years and we have a proven track record in the community due to our successful project with the Enid public schools. We are looking forward to helping the city embark on this landmark project.

 

Carter Donates Printers to Charity

Holly Hughes, executive vice president and chief administrative officer, Carter

ATLANTA (July 13, 2011) - When it was time to upgrade the entire printer fleet at Carter’s corporate headquarters, we wanted to make sure the machines did not end up in a landfill. The Atlanta office had 30 printers worth more than $7,000 still in great condition. We decided to divide the machines among the following three organizations that are meaningful to Carter associates. See below for picture of Carter’s IT Department on pick-up day! (From left: Joe Terrell, Lauren Cantrell, Derek Davis)

1) Make-A-Wish Foundation of Georgia, Alabama and Central and Northern Florida. In 2007, we chose the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Georgia & Alabama and Central & Northern Florida to be our primary charity partners by committing to help make wishes come true for children battling life-threatening illnesses. Since then, more than 95 percent of our associates have participated in granting wishes for 28 children in Georgia, Alabama and Florida, contributing hundreds of hours and donating hundreds of thousands of dollars. These included trips to Disney World, room makeovers, new play sets, and life-size trains, among others.

2) Capitol View Elementary School. In 1993, Carter kicked-off a partnership that still thrives today with Capitol View Elementary, a public school in downtown Atlanta. Carter implemented a mentoring program for at-risk children, which encourages our associates to mentor children on company time for four hours a month throughout the school year. Carter associates have provided over 10,000 hours of tutoring and mentoring and participate in special events, including job shadowing, Principal-for-a-Day, and Career Day.

3) The YWCA of Greater Atlanta. Carter continues to support the YWCA’s mission to eliminate racism, empower women and promote peace, justice, freedom and dignity for all. The printers will not only be used for the YWCA staff, but also available for the children to use in classrooms.

Carter’s Tampa office also donated machines to Metropolitan Ministries, a Tampa-based non-profit focused on preventing homelessness, easing hunger and helping people develop self-sufficiency in order to transition back into the community.

 

Carter’s Newest Make a Wish Child

By Sarah Peddar, business development manager, Carter

ATLANTA (June 14, 2011) - Carter is excited to make the dreams of our new Wish Child come true.

Diagnosed with Lymphoma, this six-year-old boy has always been fascinated by dinosaurs and wants to be surrounded by them.  Carter will be granting his wish for a dinosaur bedroom makeover!

Our new Wish Child lives in metro Atlanta with his family.  His favorite color is orange, he loves Hershey bars and Hot Pockets, and he enjoys playing computer games and challenging his sister on their Wii.  He also loves to read and his favorite books are the Magic Tree House series.  When he grows up, he wants to be a paleontologist or an anthropologist.

Make-A-Wish Foundation was selected as Carter’s primary charity partner in 2007 and this boy’s wish is our 18^th wish in four years. For more information about Make-A-Wish Foundation, visit www.wish.org. 

 

Two UGA Wishes Come True

On Saturday, Oct. 9, The University of Georgia had two wishes come true: Coach Richt and the Bulldogs received their first conference win, and Drew Wiese, got to see what it felt like to be a UGA football player. Drew, Carter’s Make-A-Wish child for this quarter, is 16-years-old and from Gainesville, Ga. His wish was to become a UGA football player for a day, which came true as a result of Carter and the Make-A-Wish program.

He began his day with a few gifts from Carter and Make-A-Wish including an official team jersey, UGA hat, autographed football and a bag full of Bulldog goodies. Then, off he went for a pre-game meeting with the coaches and team. Drew and his father participated in the esteemed “Dawg Walk” to the stadium where he then cheered his favorite team on from the sidelines between the hedges.

To see more pictures, view the album on Carter’s Facebook page.

Make-A-Wish Foundation was selected as Carter’s primary charity partner in 2007 and Drew’s wish is our 17th wish in 3 years. For more information about Make-A-Wish Foundation of Georgia and Alabama, visit www.wish.org.

Carey Poole brings more than 25 years of interior design and management experience to Carter's Interiors Project Management and Relocation Services group and has designed and managed a diverse set of projects ranging in size from 3,000 square feet up to 1 million square feet. She is well-versed in programming, space planning, furniture integration and layout, budget consulting, personnel management and contract negotiations with added experience in strategic and long-term planning and forecasting with added time spent in both first and second generation space up-fitting.

Gavin’s Wish Revealed

By: Colleen Voisin, administrative assistant, Carter

On Aug. 1, 3-year-old Gavin, was rustled out of his home to see family members and volunteers full of cheers and tears.  As Gavin peered through the crowd he spotted something in the distance he had been wanting for a long time, his very own outdoor play set.  

 Much to Gavin and his family’s avail this was not just any ordinary play set that sat before their eyes, but the entire back yard had been transformed into a dinosaur playground.  

The sounds of jungle noises filled the air as Gavin stepped onto the dinosaur footprint stepping stones and ran to explore his new playhouse.  His exploration continued as he discovered a sand box filled with bones, a discovery trail with educational facts and fossils, an array of bugs, lizards and birds hanging from the trees as well as and a large dinosaur nest filled with eggs. Gavin’s next stop was to inspect the 6-foot dinosaur cutouts handcrafted especially for him.   

Our volunteers worked tirelessly to pull this wish together, and it was truly an amazing display of teamwork.  Neither heat nor rain could keep our associates from making this wish come true.  We had great hands-on support from our staff as well as vendor donations. Thank you to all who participated to make Gavin’s Wish a reality.

After Gavin and his family had a chance to take it all in, Gavin’s father, Andre sent this message to Carter, “First, let me mention Gavin has been on his new playground at 8:30 a.m. every morning this week.  Our neighbors have been over three times in as many days.  And, on behalf of April and I, we thank you with all our hearts for what you did for Gavin.”

Make-A-Wish Foundation was selected as Carter’s primary charity partner in 2007 and Gavin’s wish is our 16th wish in 3 years. For more information about Make-A-Wish Foundation, visit http://www.wish.org/.