GAI Consultants' Orlando office joined other companies to partner with Orlando District 4 Commissioner Patty Sheehan, and the Orlando Fire and Police Departments at Commissioner Sheehan’s 8th Annual “Wheels for Kids” Program. The program builds and donates bikes to children living in Orlando's Reeves Terrace Apartments. Each of the 95 children, ages 5 to 14, received a bike, helmet, bike lock, and chain.

GAI President and CEO Gary DeJidas, Vice President and Orlando Managing Officer Rick Cima, and Business Development Manager Tina Gonzalez helped distribute bikes as Santa Claus rode in on a fire truck, escorted by the Orlando Mounted Police.

Commissioner Sheehan's “Wheels for Kids” was started to ensure that children have safe, reliable ways to get to school after budget cuts stopped several bus routes that brought kids from Reeves Terrace to school. This annual commitment is growing stronger as the importance of education becomes even more important. GAI is proud to help develop the leaders of tomorrow, one bike at a time. For more pictures from the bike drop off, please visit Commissioner Sheehan’s Web page here.

GAI proudly partnered with City Commissioner Patty Sheehan and other businesses to distribute Thanksgiving turkeys at an Orlando public housing community. President Gary DeJidas (center) and GAI-Orlando Managing Officer Rick Cima (far left) joined others in helping deliver frozen turkeys to each of the 180 families living in Reeves Terrace.

GAI, Baker Barrios Architects, and Urban Life Management Restaurants have been consistent supporters of Commissioner Sheehan’s efforts to help her constituents living in public housing. Through their financial support, these participants are also responsible for ensuring Reeves Terrace’s children receive a new bicycle for Christmas through Commissioner Sheehan’s annual Wheels for Kids event.

GAI-Pittsburgh is proud that the city it was founded in is host to the G20 Summit of global leaders. Employees participated in a city-wide cleanup before their Sept. 24 arrival. Alan Gilman, Media Services Manager and GAI Corporate Responsibility Chairman, and David Mollish, Assistant Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer, joined others Sept. 12 in volunteering to pick up trash in the city neighborhood of Mt. Washington.

In a display of teamwork, charity, and a little friendly competition, GAI-Orlando partnered with Ustler Development to support the 15th Annual Insurance Office of America (IOA) Corporate 5K Run/Walk. Over 20 GAI employees, including executive vice president Rusty Sievers, and GAI friends and family laced up their running shoes and donned bright green t-shirts to participate in the event.

The IOA Corporate 5K Run/Walk attracted over 11,000 people and more than 540 corporate teams to the downtown Orlando area. This year, proceeds benefitted the Track Shack Foundation, Parramore Kidz Zone, Orlando’s Christian Service Center, and the Orlando Runner’s Club Scholarship fund.

GAI-Charleston participated in the annual Canstruction Food Drive, a design/build competition for teams of architects, engineers, and students. GAI's Ultimate Rubik's Cube (pictured) consisted of approximately 1,300 cans and was on display from Feb. 24 to March 1, 2009 at the Clay Center for the Arts and Sciences of West Virginia. At the end of the exhibition, GAI’s design won the People's Choice and Bold Color Awards. After the event, all canned goods in the competition were donated to the Charleston Covenant House.

After a day at work, Geotechnical & Structural Engineering Lead Field Associate Dave Smeltzer can think of nothing more relaxing than hiking on his favorite trail at Tomlinson Run State Park, located near Newell, WV. The park has been a second home for Dave, who has been on a project assignment at Stratton, Ohio-based Sammis Power Station for the past two years. When he’s not writing novels, Dave donates time to the park he treasures by participating in an adopt-a-trail program. “I really love the park and its trails and wanted to give something back,” Dave writes.

Dave has picked up trash and cleared fallen trees from his favorite trail, White Oak. And in true GAI fashion, he’s even built a number of foot bridges over a few wet trail areas. “The building of the bridges wasn’t as bad as carrying the materials almost two miles,” he said. Dave is a terrific representation of the type of people who work at GAI Consultants, Inc., and we commend him on his unmatched sense of philanthropy and willingness to become involved in his community away from home.

GAI-Fort Wayne recently adopted a two-mile stretch of Indiana Route 14, just west of Interstate 69 in Fort Wayne. During this two-year commitment, GAI staff will keep this stretch of highway clean and free of trash through the Indiana Department of Transportation's Adopt-A-Highway program. This initiative offers citizens the opportunity to show their pride in their state by caring for the environment.