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Caring for our communities is a fundamental value at GZA. We have a rich legacy of sharing our financial resources, our ideas and our staff with our communities. By reaching out to others, we work hard to improve the quality of life in our communities in many ways. Just a few of the ways that GZA provides support to the community are listed below.
MUSTARD SEED MISSIONS
 It’s been nearly a decade since Paul Davis, an environmental scientist with GZA, and his wife Jan made their first trip to Haiti as part of a team devoted to addressing the health and living conditions of the Haitian people. That desire ultimately led to the formation of Mustard Seed Missions (MSM), a non-profit public charity that seeks to serve the poor in Haiti.
This calling has been answered by remarkable results. Since its inception, MSM has brought medical teams throughout Haiti – from the coastal city of Les Cayes to the mountain village of Platon – setting up medical clinics that daily serve upwards of 200 patients, serving about 800 patients over the course of a week. Those whose conditions are severe are transported to a city hospital, with expenses borne by MSM.
Paul and Jan Davis, the president and secretary/treasurer respectively of MSM, have returned to Les Cayes and the surrounding area several times a year since 2002 to offer continuity of primary medical treatment to Haitians who otherwise could not afford health care.
Working with its Haitian counterpart – Mustard Seed Haiti – MSM has also worked to improve environmental conditions within the remote rural villages of the impoverished country. Currently, the organization’s Rain on the Roof project has assessed nearly 100 homes in the mountain village of Platon, and has initiated roof replacement and rooftop rain-collection systems, families with new roofs, the community with an improved water supply, and providing local Haitian workers with employment.
Most recently, MSM has been providing health education about cholera, meeting with community leaders in Kayman, Dibray, Duperon, and Platon to impart the necessary training to identify, control, prevent and treat the diseases within their villages before they reach acute levels.
Paul and Jan have also just been appointed to serve on the Board of Trustees of a Haitian university in Les Cayes, where they have intermittently taught over the past four years, to help improve the educational program and opportunities for agricultural, environmental, and engineering students.
GZA is proud to support Mustard Seed Missions and the important work that colleague Paul Davis and members of this remarkable organization perform in the name of good stewardship. MORE INFORMATION on Mustard Seed Missions>
 The Salvation Army is one of the world’s largest international charitable organizations whose charitable goals include, “… the advancement of education, the relief of poverty, and other charitable objects beneficial to society or the community of mankind as a whole”. This includes broadly programs in International Health & Emergency Services and Community Development. One of the specific Community Development programs include providing assistance to people with a variety of social afflictions through its 119 US-based Adult Rehabilitation Centers (ARCs).
 The Salvation Army Adult Rehabilitation Centers in the United States provide an in-residence rehabilitation program with a focus on basic necessities. Each beneficiary is provided with a clean and healthy living environment, good food, work therapy, leisure time activities, group and individual counseling, and resources to assist each person to develop life skills.
GZA proudly supports this organization and some of its activities financially. Furthermore, in the months immediately following the Katrina disaster, volunteers from GZA assisted the Army in their relief efforts in Biloxi, Mississippi.
 Since 1980, the Make-A-Wish Foundation® has enriched the lives of children with life-threatening medical conditions through its wish-granting work. The Foundation's mission reflects the life-changing impact that a Make-A-Wish® experience has on children, families, referral sources, donors, sponsors and entire communities. Since its humble beginnings, the organization has blossomed into a worldwide phenomenon, reaching more than 161,000 children around the world.
A network of more than 25,000 volunteers enable the Make-A-Wish Foundation to serve children with life-threatening medical conditions. Volunteers serve as wish granters, fundraisers, special events assistants and in numerous other capacities. GZA proudly supports the Make-A-Wish Foundation through annual contributions. To learn more about Make-A-Wish foundation, please click here.
PAN MASS CHALLENGE
GZA is once again proud to sponsor a team of riders and support volunteers participating in the Pan Mass Challenge (PMC) to raise money to support the Jimmy Fund and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in the fight against cancer. The PMC is a [nearly] 200-mile endurance challenge from Sturbridge to Provincetown, MA. The fundraising event began in 1980 when 36 cyclists first completed this ride across Massachusetts to raise funds for the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Now in its 29th year, the PMC expects to raise $34 million and to date, has raised more than $204 million.
GZA’s involvement in the PMC started twenty years ago when one employee rode in the PMC. Since that time, our involvement and enthusiasm has grown to include as much as 15 riders, dozens of volunteers, and hundreds of supporters. Our fundraising total to date is approximately $500,000. This year, seven GZA employees are undertaking the challenge, with hopes of raising $40,000.
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