Neal Communities Helps Kiddie Academy Feed Empty Little Tummies

SARASOTA, Fla., December 2, 2011 - Neal Communities has contributed $500 to help the Kiddie Academy’s Apple Gala raise funds for Elks Feeding Empty Little Tummies (E.F.E.L.T.). The mission of E.F.E.L.T. is to provide food for the weekends for homeless elementary students. They do this by filling back packs with foods that the children can easily prepare and eat over the weekends, when there is no school breakfast and lunch program. The Neal Communities contribution, combined with the $4000 raised at the Gala’s silent auction, raised enough to feed 100 children for one year. The Manatee school board estimates there are about 2000 children who are homeless—living in cars, group homes or motels.

“It’s almost unimaginable that children are going hungry in our community. We applaud Kiddie Academy for using their resources to raise funds for this worthy cause,” stated John Neal, president of John Neal Homes, a division of Neal Communities. “Our company has long been committed to causes such as this that make an immediate improvement in children’s lives. Children are the future of our community, and I encourage others to get involved and donate to this organization.”

The school’s parent committee had made three recommendations for the charity to support during this year’s gala. “It is nice to donate for clothes, toys etc. but my thought was that we need to focus on the basics - which is food. One of my clients worked with E.F.E.L.T. and shared the sad stories - our committee all agreed that we would support this charity,” explained Marina Wolf-Schmidt, owner of Kiddie Academy. “We appreciate the contribution from Neal Communities. They are a company that we can always count on to step up and help when there’s a need in the community. We value character development and see them as a good example for our children.”

Kiddie Academy, located just off Lakewood Ranch Blvd across from Central Park at Lakewood Ranch, has earned its “Apple” (Accredited Professional Preschool Learning Environment) Accreditation, a national early learning designation.

Neal Communities is recognized for its philanthropy in Sarasota and Manatee Counties. The company’s president, Pat Neal, has received the Legislative Service Award, the Audubon Society Legislative Award, the Award for Meritorious Public Service, The Lakewood Ranch Community Fund Humanitarian of the Year award, and many other awards and recognition for service and philanthropy. Neal Communities is ranked #94 nationally based on sales by BUILDER Magazine, and #1 locally by HBW Inc. based on number of permits issued in 2010 and by Metrostudy and Hanley Wood Market Intelligence based on number of home sales. With over 8,000 homes built in Southwest Florida, Neal Communities’ honors and accolades include the Lakewood Ranch Business Alliance’s Business of the Year “Sandie” for 2011, 37 Awards in the 2011 Parade of Homes, 48 Aurora Awards, 5 Best in American Living Awards, and hundreds of local and regional industry awards. For more information, visit www.nealcommunities.com.