As the fall-out from the pandemic continues, it’s heartening to see trade show and event suppliers step up to help their employees, industry and communities be strong, resilient and hopeful. Check out what these venues, vendors and CVBs are doing to support the greater good.

The Venetian and Las Vegas Sands  

From donating millions of pieces of PPE to healthcare workers and delivering food to local food banks to distributing 20,000 hygiene kits to Las Vegas charities while making sure its employees are cared for during the state of Nevada-mandated closure, the Las Vegas Sands has implemented a host of CSR initiatives since mid-March. Here are just a few of the generous donations the hospitality company recently made:

• 2 million surgical masks and 20,000 protective suits to help health-care professionals, first responders and nonprofit organizations in Nevada and New York.  
• $250,000 to Three Square food bank, Communities In Schools and Share Village Las Vegas to jumpstart their community relief responses.
• 60 pallets of fresh produce, proteins and other food items, filling more than two semi-trucks (the equivalent to 56,723 meals), to Three Square food bank.
• 1,000 boxed lunches to Catholic Charities each day from May 1-14. The 14,000 boxed lunches were used for the organization’s homeless outreach while its dining facility remained closed due to the pandemic.            
• More than 55,000 bottles of water and 150 cases of dry food to community organizations including The Salvation Army, Nevada Partnership for Homeless Youth, U.S. Vets, Family Promise of Las Vegas and more.

ABCOMRENTS and SmartSource Join Live for Life COVID-19 Coalition 

ABCOM Technology Group companies ABCOMRENTS and SmartSource — both providers of computer, audio video and interactive technology for businesses and events — joined the Live for Life Live-Event Industry COVID-19 Coalition to help create temporary emergency field hospitals during the pandemic. The Coalition, which comprises more than 200 event-related companies, works with hospital systems and regions experiencing high rates of acute infections requiring additional facilities and controlled environments to treat affected patients.  

“At the onset of the pandemic, we made it our goal to use our equipment and expertise to keep America working, learning and supported during this time of need – we know we can have an even greater impact by joining the Live for Life Coalition,” said Ali Vafa, CEO of ABCOM Technology Group.

ABCOM and SmartSource provided digital signage including large displays, digital kiosks and LED walls to help provide real-time updates as well as directional and facility information. The companies deployed these products on-demand to temporary health care facilities such as at the Javits Center in New York City, which recently closed but is still standing by in the event of a second wave of coronavirus infections. 

Now, with COVID-19 cases decreasing in some localities, the company has shifted its efforts to advocating for the protection of the events industry, according to Shannon McNealy, marketing manager for ABCOM/SmartSource. 

“The Coalition has created assets that we are using to show our support for the events industry and celebrate the power of live events,” she explained, “We are sharing posts and videos to bring attention to our industry and help promote our economic and community recovery, which will be so important. We hope that the initial mission of the Coalition is behind us all, which is a reason for good news!”

Visit Anaheim Coordinates Unused Meeting Supplies Donation 

When the Society of Toxicology cancelled its 59^th Annual Meeting & ToxExpo at the Anaheim Convention Center in mid-March, Visit Anaheim made sure the event’s almost 6,000 unused meeting bags didn’t go to waste. 

On May 18, the CVB worked with SOT and Transportation Charter Services to coordinate the donation to the Anaheim White House restaurant, which provides meals to local youth and families through its nonprofit Caterina’s Club. The bags will be used to deliver and distribute food to those in need throughout the community.

“The Society was disappointed that the COVID-19 pandemic prevented our planned event in Anaheim, so we are pleased to be able to support the Anaheim community through the donation of nearly 6,000 meeting bags to help deliver meals to families in need,” said George P. Daston, president of SOT.

Established in 2005, Caterina’s Club was founded by Chef Bruno Serato of the Anaheim White House to serve free dinners to children in need. Even with the temporary closure of the restaurant, Caterina’s Club has still served more than 545,000 meals to local families over the last couple of months.   

To learn more about Visit Anaheim’s recent giveback efforts, go here.  

Don’t miss any event-related news: Sign up for our weekly e-newsletter HERE and engage with us on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram!