Pillar Care Continuum honored Bridge Industrial’s Jeff Milanaik at its 2022 Steps to Independence Celebration, held Nov. 9 at The Grove in Cedar Grove, where it raised more than $1.9 million to support its mission of serving those with disabilities. — Courtesy: Pillar Care
By Joshua Burd
A nonprofit serving people with disabilities has raised nearly $2 million with the help of Bridge Industrial’s Jeff Milanaik, the veteran developer and longtime supporter of the organization.
Pillar Care Continuum, formerly Cerebral Palsy of New Jersey, honored the industry leader during its recent Steps to Independence Celebration in early November. The event drew more than 460 guests to The Grove in Cedar Grove to raise more than $1.9 million, a new record for the organization, which provides a range of services to infants, children and adults with more than 100 different disabilities and diagnoses.
“This was the single most successful event in the almost 70-year history of our agency,” Pillar Care CEO David Bishop said. “We could not be more grateful to Jeff Milanaik for the months of hard work he invested in order to support our programs.”
Pillar Care said Milanaik, Bridge Industrial’s Northeast region partner, was introduced to the organization more than 20 years ago by former board member Burt Eichler, the attorney and founding partner of Brach Eichler LLC. He has continued to support the agency over the years and in 2019 joined the event committee to spearhead its 2019 Steps to Independence Celebration, its largest fundraising event of the year, with honorees including many of the leading figures in New Jersey’s real estate industry.
After three years of serving on the committee, Milanaik agreed to be the honoree for the 2022 event, which also had a “Text for a Cause” portion that allowed attendees to donate to specific projects in real time.
“Philanthropy has always been incredibly important to me, and as a father and a grandfather, the mission of helping children across the state of New Jersey is close to my heart,” Milanaik said. “The work that Pillar Care does is incredible, and their longstanding mission has helped countless families, supporting those with special needs in a way that facilitates access to better resources and the opportunity to live more enriched lives. I encourage everyone to donate to this amazing cause in hopes of reaching my personal fundraising goal of $2 million and I’m eager to see the impact we can make throughout 2023.”
Based in East Hanover, Pillar Care helps more than 1,700 families each year by providing early intervention support, two special needs schools, therapy within public schools, residential services and day programs for adults with special needs, among other services.
For more information about the organization, its mission and its impact, visit www.pillarnj.org. For volunteering opportunities or for general inquiries, contact Corry DeMarco at 973-821-8114 or cdemarco@pillarnj.org.
To donate, visit https://pillarnj.org/donate/ or contact Evan Whitenack at ewhitenack@pillarnj.org.
