Bilzin Sumberg Celebrates One Year Anniversary of Bilzin Sumberg Cares

Miami, FL (October 15, 2008) – Despite recent reports that South Florida has the lowest percentage of adults who volunteer in the community, the law firm of Bilzin Sumberg Baena Price & Axelrod LLP is proud to announce that Miami's JCS Seymour Gelber Senior Day Care Center will be this year's beneficiary of Bilzin Sumberg Cares' year round support and the site of the October 18, 2008 Bilzin Sumberg Cares Service Day, marking the program's one-year anniversary and the commencement of the new partnership.

The JCS Seymour Gelber Senior Day Care Center is a State-licensed adult day care/respite service that is offered to frail and impaired adults and their caregivers. Bilzin Sumberg's work will include landscaping, themed gardens, mural painting, building painting, shelf and storage assembly, activity room organization and filing, arts and crafts activities with Center clients and hurricane preparedness kit preparation.

Bilzin Sumberg Cares is a volunteer employee-based community program and the first and only of its kind in the South Florida legal community. Springing from the firm's desire to positively impact the community, the program has created the opportunity for attorneys and staff to work hand-in-hand to help shape our community. Bilzin Sumberg Cares serves as a vehicle for the firm's support of non-profit organizations.

The program's recent beneficiary, Southside Elementary Museums Magnet School, is a school in which 90% of its students qualify for federally subsidized breakfasts and lunches. During the past year, Bilzin Sumberg Cares organized a book bag drive, delivering 125 fully-loaded book bags to the neediest students, and held a Project Day in which over 150 firm members created outdoor themed gardens and learning centers, painted classrooms and landscaped the school's grounds. In April, Bilzin Sumberg hosted an Earth Day assembly at the school which coincided with its own "Going Green" rollout. Representatives from Miami MetroZoo brought an assortment of animals and discussed the importance of protecting our natural environments with the students.

As part of the Bilzin Sumberg Cares initiative, Bilzin Sumberg continues to maintain its commitment of volunteering, financial support and providing pro bono services to other local, state and national non-profit organizations. Bilzin Sumberg works closely with Hands on Miami on a number of community volunteer projects, including ServiceJuris Day, where the local South Florida legal community comes together to work on a community volunteer project. This year the project was the renovation of the Miami-Dade Regional Juvenile Detention Center.

The community has recognized many of Bilzin Sumberg's attorneys who have embodied the Bilzin Sumberg Cares spirit through their work with various non-profit organizations. Three Bilzin Sumberg attorneys were recently honored by the 11th Judicial Circuit and Dade County Bar Association for their pro bono commitments. Michael C. Foster, a Litigation Partner of Bilzin Sumberg, Alvin D. Lodish, a Litigation Partner of Bilzin Sumberg, and Adam F. Haimo, an Associate of the firm, were honored as recipients of the "Put Something Back" Pro Bono Service Award for their continuing support and outstanding contribution to the representation of neglected, abandoned and abused children. Bilzin Sumberg Partner Mitchell E. Widom was selected as a finalist for United Way of Miami-Dade's Community Service Award, recognizing his involvement in Crohn's & Colitis Foundation of America. This year, Bilzin Sumberg was also honored with the 2008 John Edward Smith Child Advocacy Award, which is presented to law firms that demonstrate a strong commitment to providing pro bono services to Lawyers for Children America.

In June, John C. Sumberg, a Managing Partner of Bilzin Sumberg, was elected to serve on the Board of Directors for the United Way of Miami-Dade. Mr. Sumberg has been instrumental in establishing the concept of volunteerism as a core component of Bilzin Sumberg Cares. He is actively involved in Coral Rock Academy, Florida's first and only specialized school for children with neurobiological disorders, serving on the Board and assisting the school in securing a new location.

Alan D. Axelrod, co-chair of Bilzin Sumberg's Corporate & Securities Group, has volunteered with Special Olympics for over 20 years. In February, he led a team of Bilzin Sumberg Cares volunteers at the 2008 Special Olympics Miami-Dade, a day of fun and competition for those with mental disabilities.
For the past five years, ALS Recovery Fund Board member and firm hiring partner Alvin Lodish has led the firm's participation at the ALS Recovery Fund's Annual Lou Gehrig's Disease 10K Run & 5K Run/Walk.

With its unique hands-on approach, Bilzin Sumberg Cares affects real change while allowing the firm's staff and their families to develop a lasting bond with the South Florida community.

About Bilzin Sumberg
Bilzin Sumberg Baena Price & Axelrod LLP is a full-service commercial law firm based in Florida, with over 100 attorneys. The firm has extensive experience in the areas of corporate and securities law; environmental law; government relations; land use; litigation; real estate; restructuring and bankruptcy; technology & telecommunications; tax and wealth transfer. For more information, visit the firm's website at www.bilzin.com.

Laura Murray
(305) 350-7393
lmurray@bilzin.com OR
Richard Murry
Treister Murry Agency
(305) 531-5720
richard@tma-pr.com

This release was published on openPR.