Each summer, sponsor Sunbeam Properties & Development along with the Miramar Park of Commerce, the Miramar Police Athletic League (PAL) and Hangin’ with 5-0 campers gather to celebrate the end of another successful summer camp season and enjoy the camaraderie of the Miramar community. The group recently spent a day at the beach, cleaning up the environment, playing in the waves and enjoying an all-American barbeque served up by Sunbeam Properties & Development.
Hangin’ with 5-0 is an annual not-for-profit summer camp program organized by Miramar PAL and the City of Miramar to support underserved youth. Nearly eliminated by the city in 2008, Sunbeam Properties and Development and the Miramar Park of Commerce stepped in to help keep the free, one-of-a-kind summer camp program running and has continued to do so for the past 14 years.
“Sunbeam Properties & Development and the Miramar Park of Commerce have in many ways developed right alongside the City of Miramar, so it’s very meaningful for us to support those families that call Miramar home and bring impactful and memorable experiences to the next generation,” said Ryan Goggins, Vice President, Acquisitions, Leasing and Marketing for Sunbeam Properties and Development. “This year we wanted to do things a little differently by engaging in a group-oriented volunteer activity during our annual celebration. We value this time getting to know the campers and learning about their summer experiences.”
Many of the nine to 14-year-olds who participate in Hangin’ with 5-0 are selected by school resource officers and guidance counselors for the program. The campers participate in a weekly summer camp free-of-charge, which includes trips to the movies, excursions to the beach, live animal shows, airboat rides and more alongside Miramar’s dedicated police officers. Each day, breakfast and lunch are served.
“We have anywhere from 40 to 50 kids participate in this summer program, often repeatedly, which is great because it helps us to establish that bond from elementary through high school,” said Miramar Police Athletic League Executive Director Scott Hadley. “The connections that are forged between officers and campers are really impactful and often it’s the kids who resist coming the most who are the ones who keep coming back to enjoy the camp year after year.”
Each May, Miramar PAL in cooperation with the Miramar Police Department and the City of Miramar begin to register students for summer camp. The organization provides educational, athletic, civic and crime prevention activities for youth in a safe environment through a cooperative partnership between the police and the community. More information about the camp and its programs is available at www.miramarpal.org.
In addition to Hangin’ with 5-0, Sunbeam Properties and Development supports the City of Miramar through other nonprofit organizations, having donated resources for the Ansin Sports Complex and the Ansin Family Gallery in the Miramar Cultural Center. The Miramar Park of Commerce has also been the site for supply drives for America’s Moms for Soldiers, several holiday toy drives for Miramar children in need with the Miramar Police Department, a school supply drive for children who have a military parent on deployment and a food drive for United Way of Broward County.
