‘Good Business’

BizTUCSONApril 4, 2025

3 minutes read

PICOR Charitable Foundation Gifts More Than $1.6 Million to Community

By Loni Nannini

Commercial real estate isn’t Cushman & Wakefield | PICOR’s only area of expertise. The company also is a master at investing in its community.

“Giving back has been part of our DNA since we were founded,” said Barbi Reuter, CEO of C&W | PICOR. “On one hand, we owe it to the community to give back to help everyone thrive. On the other, it is good business.”

The company has adopted a multi-pronged approach to philanthropy − grants through the PICOR Charitable Foundation, volunteerism and service through the company itself, and leadership in nonprofit, civic and professional associations and organizations.

A Foundation of Caring

The PICOR Charitable Foundation, founded in 1994, has gifted more than $1.66 million to more than 125 local organizations that aid disadvantaged children in Southern Arizona.

The goal is to provide modest grants − ranging from $500 to $3,000 − that will make a significant impact on charities, many of which receive limited or no public funding. Grant recipients run the gamut, from small grassroots organizations to large nonprofits supporting the arts, education and literacy, mentorship, healthcare, foster care services and more.

Beneficiaries have included Angel Heart Pajama Project, Educational Enrichment Foundation, BICAS, Girl Scouts of Southern Arizona, Ronald McDonald House Charities of Southern Arizona and many more.

“We are strict about spending the funds on immediate need, not on overhead costs or corporate spending. The money goes straight to the kids,” said Tina Olson, director of property management at C&W | PICOR and a member of the foundation board of directors.

Pancakes by C&W | PICOR

The foundation’s signature annual fundraiser is C&W | PICOR’s Pancake Breakfast, an event where company employees, their families and friends come together to cook and serve the public. The 2024 event raised a record $188,000 to benefit at-risk youth. Since 2016, proceeds have been matched dollar-for-dollar by a generous match from the Burton Family Foundation, significantly extending the impact.

The YMCA of Southern Arizona is one of many multi-year grant recipients that benefit from the much-loved Tucson tradition. The grants to YMCA fund scholarships for youth to participate in academic enrichment programs, character leadership opportunities and other development activities.

“The innovation of leveraging a breakfast fundraiser by bringing together a blend of clients, vendors, employees and community members to raise funds which are donated to support area youth in need not only impacts the organizations receiving the funds to implement youth programs, but raises awareness with the greater community,” said Kurtis Dawson, CEO of YMCA of Southern Arizona.

“This, in turn, can engage additional support for the organizations providing the programs and services for area youth. It’s turning talk into action.”

That hands-on action can extend directly to disadvantaged youth. Many attend the breakfast through various nonprofits.

“The Pancake Breakfast has become a memorable outing for many of our ‘bigs’ (mentors) and ‘littles’ (mentees) and their families,” said Veronica Saiz, director of development and corporate engagement for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southern Arizona, another multi-year grant recipient. “It means a great deal to us to have local businesses actively giving back not just through financial investment in programming, but by really engaging with nonprofits in the community.”

Dawson said the impact of the foundation’s grants on local youth transcends the years.

“PICOR represents a community-development, full-circle model,” Dawson said. “The youth benefiting from programs funded by PICOR today will be tomorrow’s adult community members.”

Excellence through Volunteerism

C&W | PICOR donates corporate funds to nonprofits, sponsors organizations and invests in community support and education. Additionally, C&W | PICOR leadership and employees funnel personal resources into the community by gifting time and talent to local nonprofits, civic and economic development organizations, and professional/industry associations.

Reuter, who has led the boards of the YMCA, Tucson Metro Chamber and many other organizations, said these experiences allow people to give − and grow − their expertise and are mutually beneficial to everyone involved.

“The opportunity to get leadership training in industry and nonprofit service is huge,” Reuter said. “Practicing that in a volunteer environment has been a tremendous education that has helped me and many others in our company advance our careers while making a difference in people’s lives in our community.”

Ultimately, C&W | PICOR seeks to provide myriad avenues for meaningful community involvement by building on its credo that “better never settles.”

“Often as individuals, our hearts are in different places, and we look at these areas as important ways to involve our employees in giving back to something bigger than themselves,” said Reuter.