LAS VEGAS - Focus Property Group, a company that specializes in land investment and creating master plan communities in the southwest United States, wanted to incorporate its philanthropic philosophy into the very fabric of its corporate culture, while empowering its employees to do much more than they thought possible in helping those in need in their community.

To achieve this goal, Focus Property Group, and its strategic partner in development management, Landtek, created an innovative philanthropic program that connected every one of its more than 100 employees with a charity. The program will raise more than $2 million in monetary contributions and in-kind donations for the selected charities when all the projects are completed. In addition, the team members generated almost 4,000 hours of community service.

In August 2005, John Ritter, Chairman and CEO of Focus Property Group, issued a unique challenge to the company's team members. His challenge took the form of a reality TV show dubbed Community 911, inspired by a number of leading reality television shows including The Apprentice, American Idol and Survivor.

The company divided its employees into four teams, each working with a charitable organization each individual team chose to support. The teams had four months to create programs and develop plans with measurable results. Along the way, monthly meetings were convened, and progress monitored and rewarded, accordingly.

The teams were provided with $2,500 in seed money from Focus Property Group and the Ritter Charitable Trust and were required to present the status of their plans on a monthly basis in "the boardroom" to "The John" and the "Idol Judges," composed of the top level executives at the companies. A winner was selected each month for an "Immunity Challenge" and received more seed money for their project.

Taking this project well beyond the imagined limit, the team members have committed to rehabilitating and expanding a home for children of Child Haven, a county based facility for those children who are abused, neglected or abandoned; a new parcel of land for the foster care agency, Olive Crest, that will be home to a children's educational facility and two to four homes for foster families; a new Wish House for the Make-A-Wish Foundation to host children faced with life threatening diseases (there are only two others like it in the country); and assisting in the creation of a new pet care facility for the Shade Tree shelter that empowers abused women to leave difficult situations, knowing that their beloved pets can come with them and their children.

Community 911 culminates in a "live finale" at the company's holiday party during which time a winner will be announced, and the winning charity will receive an additional $50,000. All charities involved will receive cash donations from Focus Property Group and The Ritter Charitable Trust. The charity that is the runner up will receive $30,000, the third place winner will be awarded $20,000 and the fourth place winner will receive $10,000.

While each team was given seed money by Focus Property Group, and earned more funds through the boardroom meetings, the teams consisting of 103 employees took it upon themselves to volunteer nearly 4,000 hours and raise more than a $2,082,000 in monetary contributions and in-kind donations for their charities.

Despite the great progress that was made by the four teams involved, team activities will not end at the year-end holiday party and the announcement of the 'winner' of the contest. Each team will continue to add to the thousands of hours they've contributed to each charity's efforts and will work over the coming months to complete the projects they have started, each of which will have a long lasting impact on Southern Nevada.

The Community 911 program is the result of a creative idea of John Ritter, the CEO of a company with a big heart, who believes in the saying "Do Well and Then Do Good." Through the program, Focus Property Group and Landtek employees have been given the opportunity to contribute their time and effort to projects that benefit their fellow Southern Nevadans and have gained a renewed appreciation for what they can do to help their community.

Focus Property Group is a combination of two distinct groups of companies. The first is a portfolio of investment entities which acquire and hold undeveloped real, personal and intangible property in Southern Nevada, and throughout the Western Region. The second constitutes a group of operational, development and services companies engaged in the actual development of the master planned communities, with equity participation. Focus Property Group has been involved in transactions exceeding $5 billion and holds a real estate portfolio with a valuation of more than $1.5 billion.

Focus Property Group

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