At the Personal Injury law firm of Gelber & O'Connell, LLC, we believe it is both our duty and our honor to give back to the communities we serve, and we are or have been proudly involved with the following organizations and activities:
AM BUFFALO/WNY LIVING
The law firm regularly appears on AM Buffalo (Channel 7) and WNY Living (Channel 2) to discuss legal topics about personal injury law. Some of the topics covered are:
- How to Choose a Personal Injury Attorney
- The Mechanics of a Personal Injury Lawsuit
- Distracted Driving
- Truck Accidents
- Automobile Accidents
- Motorcycle Accidents
- Slips, Trips and Falls
- Insurance Company Statements
NATIONAL END DISTRACTED DRIVING CAMPAIGN
As part of a nationwide effort to raise awareness of the dangers of distracted driving and help our children make safer driving decisions our law firm will be making presentations to high schools in the Western New York area beginning in the late Spring of 2012, continuing into the next school year. The presentation was developed by the National "End Distracted Driving", "60 for Safety" and "No Distracted Driving" organizations, in collaboration with safety professionals whose expertise includes framing the appropriate messages to reach teens. As part of the Campaign we requested, provided documentation in support of and obtained a Proclamation from the Town of Amherst declaring April 2012 "End Distracted Driving Month". We are looking to speak to other community organizations which are interested in and believe they would benefit from a discussion about the dangers of distracted driving.
PLEDGE 2 DRIVE RESPONSIBLY
We are co-sponsors with Channel 2 in a 2012 campaign to educate the public to drive responsibly and end distracted driving. Through Public Service Announcements and community events, in addition to the WNY Living appearances, we are proud to give back to the Buffalo area and help our teens make better driving decisions.
E-SCRAP FOR CAMP GOOD DAYS
We are proud to be one of the designated drop-off locations, in partnership with Sunkking electronic recycling, where the community (and our law firm and its employees and friends) can retire their old electronic equipment. For each pound of electronics that Sunkking recycles through this program, a monetary donation will be made to Camp Good Days to fund future programs and send children with cancer to summer camp.
NATIONAL ALLIANCE ON MENTAL HEALTH (NAMI)
We donated to the Christmas is for Kids Campaign for this mental health organization, which is dedicated to building better lives for the millions of Americans affected by mental illness.
FOOD BANK OF WESTERN NEW YORK/FOOD 2 FAMILIES
In co-sponsorship with Town Square Media (WYRK/JOYFM/WBLK/JACKFM), we participated in the year end campaign to get food to those in need in our community during the holiday season. Our law firm donated a thousand reusable/recycled shopping bags to the Food Bank of Western New York and numerous affiliated organizations (i.e., St. Vincent DePaul Society, Food Pantry at St. Francis of Assisi Church, Niagara Community Action Program).
PLEDGE NOT 2 DRINK AND DRIVE
We were co-sponsors with Channel 2 in a 2011 campaign to educate the public not to drink and drive. Through Public Service Announcements and community events (Erie County Fair, Galleria of Treats), in addition to the WNY Living appearances, we were happy to give back to Western New York to help drivers make better decisions and increase safety on the roads.
THNK B4 U TXT 2011 CAMPAIGN
We were one of several original sponsors for the Campaign against texting while driving initiated by Channel 4 (and sister station CW23). The campaign was created to bring a broad awareness of the dangers involved in texting while driving. Through both PSAs and the distribution of thumb bands, which serve as a reminder not to text while driving, an effort was made to reach out to the community and, in particular, newer high school and college drivers, to be attentive to the significant dangers of all forms of distracted driving.
CHRISTMAS IS FOR KIDS
Last Christmas we were happy to sponsor a fundraiser in conjunction with 97 Rock, as well as donate $1,000 for toys to be purchased, for several hundred underprivileged children and their families so that their holiday season could be a little brighter. The event, which was to include food, entertainment and presents, was to be held at the HUB in Hamburg, however, due to extremely inclement weather on the night of the party it was cancelled. The gifts we donated, however, were delivered to the all of the children in time for their Christmas celebrations.
LANGUAGE TO LITERACY PROGRAM
Our firm was proud to provide a grant to the Buffalo Hearing and Speech Center for use in their Language to Literacy Program, which enabled them to expand their programming. In addition, our donation of Sabres tickets motivated some of their most challenging students to complete homework assignments and meet targeted goals.
CARVINGS FOR A CAUSE/RE-TREE WNY
We commissioned a very special statue in 2008, which was subsequently added to the front lawn at Gelber & O'Connell. It is a wooden carving of a Herschell Carousel horse created by artist Rick Pratt of Corfu through Carvings for a Cause, which promoted the reuse of trees that were damaged in the extensive ice storm in October 2006. The proceeds from the commission were used to replant hundreds of trees in the Western New York area after the devastation suffered during that storm.
HURRICANE KATRINA
In October 2005, Herschel Gelber LLC hosted a fundraising event for friends, families, animal lovers and their pets, to benefit the animal victims of Hurricane Katrina. Guests enjoyed food stations, a Chinese auction and professionally-created pet portraits. All proceeds from the event were split 50/50 between the Humane Society and the ASPCA to assist their on-going rescue efforts on the front lines of disaster-stricken Louisiana and the surrounding areas.
Our law firm has also been a proud sponsor of:
Kids Escaping Drugs (Provides a second chance of life, free of drug and alcohol addiction, to the children in our community)
American Association of State Troopers ("Don't Drink and Drive" Campaign)
Phoenix Frontier (Non-profit corporation that prepares people with various disabilities for the job market and independent living in the community)
Aspire of Western New York (Supports children and adults with developmental disabilities by providing individualized assistance based on personal choices)
Susan G. Komen "Race for the Cure"(The world's largest non-profit organization fighting to end breast cancer)
Niagara Hospice (Million Dollar Duck Derby) (Cares for patients with end-of-life illnesses and supporting their family and loved ones through the illness and dying process)
