JM Family Enterprises, Inc. recently committed to increasing their participation in Big Brothers Big Sisters of Broward County’s School-to-Work mentoring program in the coming school year.
The number of JM Family associates who mentor youth from Deerfield Beach Middle School will increase to 25 mentors, up from 17 this past school year. The expansion of the program reflects the organization’s commitment to helping children realize their potential through one-to-one mentoring.
“It is important to us as a company to give back to our community, and providing mentorship to our youngest members is key in sculpting their futures,” said JM Family Enterprises Chairman of the Board Colin Brown.
“Our goal is to provide real-life experiences and exposure to a variety of skill sets – from our marine department and culinary services to auto-related and corporate jobs – in the hopes that our mentors will inspire these students at they explore their career paths.”
Big Brothers Big Sisters Broward President and CEO Ana Cedeno noted the effectiveness of the School-to-Work program, particularly under the leadership of JM Family Enterprises and its mentors, who span the company’s business units and corporate functions.
“Our youth have flourished this past year, thanks to JM Family associates,” said Cedeno. “These eighth-graders have been introduced to the professional world and realized that they, too, could one day have a career at an amazing company like JM Family.”
“In addition to learning about career opportunities, they’ve watched their mentors model leadership and ethics in a corporate setting,” added Cedeno. “This type of influence not only affects their future career choices but positively shapes their character.”
This past school year’s 9-month School-to-Work program culminated with words of wisdom by Board Chairman Brown at a breakfast hosted for mentees and mentors at JM Family’s Deerfield Beach headquarters. The young people were suitably impressed.
“This program has been a great experience for me through the past months because it has boosted my self-confidence a lot and helped me push harder toward my goals,” said Deerfield Middle eighth-grader Elvis, the Little Brother of JM Family associate Brandon Balfe. “My Big has helped me so much throughout this program. He made me realize that I should never stop chasing my dreams. Thank you to my Big, and thank you to everyone in this program who has helped me succeed.”
About JM Family Enterprises, Inc.
JM Family Enterprises, Inc., founded by Jim Moran in 1968, is a $15.1 billion diversified automotive company ranked No. 21 on Forbes’ list of America’s Largest Private Companies. It is also ranked No. 51 by FORTUNE® as one of the 100 Best Companies to Work For®, its 20th consecutive year on the list. JM Family has more than 4,200 associates and its primary subsidiaries include: Southeast Toyota Distributors, the world’s largest independent distributor of Toyota vehicles; JM&A Group, one of the leading independent providers of finance and insurance (F&I) products in the automotive industry; Southeast Toyota Finance and DataScan, both part of World Omni Financial Corp., a diversified financial services company; and JM Lexus. Headquartered in Deerfield Beach, Fla., JM Family has major U.S. operations in Jacksonville and Margate, Fla.; Commerce and Alpharetta, Ga.; Mobile, Ala.; and St. Louis, Mo. Interact with JM Family at Facebook.com/JMFamilyEnterprise
About Big Brothers Big Sisters of Broward County
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Broward County provides children facing adversity with strong and enduring, professionally supported, one-to-one mentoring relationships that change their lives for the better, forever. The organization partners with parents, guardians, volunteers and others in the community and holds itself accountable for each child in its program achieving: higher aspirations, greater confidence, better relationships, educational success and avoidance of risky behaviors. For more information, e-mail anac@bbbsbroward.org or call 954-584-9990.
