When he was a kid, Chris Zizza, president at C & R Flooring Inc. (Needham, Mass.), was adopted by a family via Catholic Charities. Today, the fact that his life was changed by charity motivates Zizza to give back at every turn, as well, and the devastation on the East Coast caused by Hurricane Irene in August has given him a big opportunity.
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When he was a kid, Chris Zizza, president at C & R Flooring Inc. (Needham, Mass.), was adopted by a family via Catholic Charities. Today, the fact that his life was changed by charity motivates Zizza to give back at every turn, as well, and the devastation on the East Coast caused by Hurricane Irene in August has given him a big opportunity.
Hurricane Irene flooded downtown Wilmington, Vt., with nearly six feet of water in late August.
This time, Zizza has his sights set on Wilmington, Vt., a ski town of little more than 2,000 about 100 miles northwest of C&R's base outside Boston. With the Friends of the Valley Foundation-which he co-founded along with Lynn Bucossi and Kevin Ryan-Zizza is spearheading an effort to rebuild multiple businesses in downtown Wilmington, and they're starting with the North Star Bowl & Video, a de facto community center for the town. "We went to Wilmington and put our ear to the ground and saw all the destruction," Zizza said, "and we chose North Star Pizza & Bowling as our mission."
The fundraising goal to repair North Star is $800,000. Zizza is using a steady stream of fundraising events to generate awareness, solicit donations and sell 750 raffle tickets at $100 apiece for a chance to win an enticing prize package: one Fender guitar signed by legendary rocker Bruce Springsteen (donated by Zizza and valued at $10,000), two tickets to an upcoming Springsteen concert during his 2012 tour (dates TBD), hotel and airfare.
Along with repairing North Star's moneymaking operations-the bowling alleys and restaurant-the business is being re-built to include a real community center that will let all area nonprofits host events for free.
Zizza is hoping friends within the wood flooring industry will lend a hand.
"We are rebuilding one business at a time in downtown Wilmington. When this is done," he said, "we'll move on to the next one. With all the wood flooring companies across the country-from retailers to distributors to manufacturers-if we all used our resources to help Friends of the Valley, we're going to hit this goal in no time."
Up next is a Friends of the Valley New Years Eve Party at North Star. In March, Zizza will hold a St. Patrick's Day fundraiser in Westchester, N.Y.; everyone in the wood flooring industry is invited. Donations can be made via the foundation's website using PayPal or mailed to Friends of the Valley, P.O. Box 1641 Wilmington, VT 05363.
"The restaurant should be open by New Years, and now we're faced with the daunting task of raising about a half-million more," Zizza said. "But we're pushing forward, you know, Americans helping Americans."
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