<img SRC="unispec.gif" BORDER=0 height=120 width=600>
Creating Expressions of Gratitude & Celebration
Welcome Who is Unispec Products
Story of Lucite Contact Us Order Info
Award Sponsorship Holiday Products Promotional Products


COMMUNITY SERVICE AWARD SPONSORSHIP PROGRAM


I wanted to bring to your attention a community service opportunity that can set you apart from other companies and provide you with high profile low cost PR which will gain you both customer respect and appreciation, please read on to learn about this community service opportunity...

For over twenty years I have been the general manager of a national advertising specialties business creating recognition awards as closing gifts for financings that bankers do. I have always been impressed with the fact that this industry pauses to recognize achievement. Too many times in other white and blue collar jobs there is no recognition of having accomplished something, a goal is reached and one simply moves onto the next goal. It's important to stop and celebrate and toot one's horn.

Some time ago I attended an event that was a life changing experience for me that has brought me to expand my mission and vision through the recognition awards business. I have wanted to make this business more meaningful for oftentimes it has just seemed like business for business sake and I have had a desire to pursue something with more socially redeeming value.

On a related personal family note, my only child, Joseph, developed a mental illness when he turned 16 years old when he experimented with LSD for the first time. This threw Joe into a psychotic state and he has had a diagnosis of schizophrenia ever since. My son is stable now and this has allowed me to get my head above water. Over the 3 years during the worst of Joe's bout with this illness there were many days I could not work due to my involvement in caring for him and I spent a lot of time getting educated by NAMI, the National Association of Mental Illness.

This changed my life immensely for I was catapulted into the situation where I had to learn the system in order to provide the support that my son needed, I have gotten familiar with the mental hospitals and other support facilities like day programs that provide structure for individuals with a mental illness by engaging them in tasks, group therapy and counseling, as well as residential apartments and group homes where they have responsibilities and also the staffs that coordinate these hospitals, programs and homes. Joe is doing phenomenally well as a result of this support structure and has now completed his GED, high school equivalency exam, has taken some college courses and is in vocational training at this time..

I have also met with many psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers and case workers. There are a lot of very dedicated people volunteering and working at low pay in order to assist the individuals with a mental illness and we have a political system that keeps shrinking available funds and sending more and more individuals with a mentally illness or developmental disability into the streets to live.

I can tell you that there is a real need for holding a belief that these struggling individuals with various mental illness symptoms and medication side effects will become better functioning human beings with a caring support system. I am telling you this so you know that I have had personal experience with many individuals with a mental illness and there is an incredible need for encouragement and appreciation when mentally ill individuals make even baby steps toward recovery and awards are one way of recognizing that.

So my mission is to believe in others, to encourage, appreciate and empower them through my area of expertise. This is even more important with people who have handicaps, for life can be absolutely harder for them and self motivation and self esteem very much lacking. I know it can be a real effort for a person with a mental illness to just take their shirt off their back and that is why the morning shower that is so natural and routine for a healthy person can be an incredible challenge for someone with a disability.

My short term vision is creating a sponsorship program that Universal Specialties LLC, will be a liaison for. Corporations can sponsor organizations with individuals who have disabilities by providing awards to individuals recognizing achievement for efforts they are making in the various programs they are in. The companies will benefit in many intrinsic ways but also with publicity in that they will have their company name smartly printed on the award as the sponsor and be able to advertise their participation in other media with pride. On the other hand the recipients of the recognition awards will benefit also in many ways as it feels good to be appreciated and can motivate them to keep persevering through life as difficult as it may be for them.

In addition to raise the seed money for awards recognition programs nationally. My long term vision is that this could be made to become a non-profit organization with a staff serving this need for many organizations. I envision very special awards ceremonies and dinners being held with speakers from NAMI such as recovering former program members who will be very inspiring to the award recipients and their families and the staffs that dedicate their time working in these organizations. Newspaper, radio and TV coverage could serve to inform the public in the community about these functions and educate the public about mental illness and its impact in our communities and the companies will be sited for their sponsorship in filling a huge need.

These mentally ill providers lack the funds to finance a program like this. Your help will be greatly appreciated in participating in this sponsorship program. Please give this your very special consideration and let me know what level you would be able to participate at. When you want to participate we will connect you with a NAMI office in your area. See the link below for further education...

http://www.nami.org

Please feel free to contact me with any questions at paulus@unispec.org

I appreciate your interest,

Paulus Bommarito

CEO
Universal Specialties (UNISPEC)

 
 

© 2000 Universal Specialties

639