Bridge Industrial’s Jeff Milanaik Honored at Pillar Care Continuum’s ‘Steps to Independence Celebration’

Organization providing lifelong support for people with disabilities recognizes Milanaik for help in raising $1.9 million

(January 5, 2023) – Bridge Industrial (“Bridge”), a privately-owned, vertically integrated real estate operating company and investment manager, announced today that Pillar Care Continuum (formerly Cerebral Palsy of New Jersey) honored Jeff Milanaik, Partner, Northeast Region, at its 2022 Steps to Independence Celebration in early November for his work with the nonprofit.

Pillar Care provides a wide range of services to infants, children and adults with more than 100 different disabilities/diagnoses, which helps over 1,700 families each year by providing early intervention support; two special needs schools; therapy within public schools; residential services; day programs for adults with special needs, and more.

The Steps to Independence Celebration took place on November 9th at The Grove in Cedar Grove, New Jersey and attracted over 460 guests to raise more than $1.9 million, a new record for the organization. There is also a ‘Text for a Cause’ portion of the Gala where attendees are invited to donate to specific projects in real-time.

“This was the single most successful event in the almost 70-year history of our agency,” said Pillar Care CEO David Bishop. “We could not be more grateful to Jeff Milanaik for the months of hard work he invested in order to support our programs.”

Milanaik was introduced to Pillar Care more than 20 years ago by then Pillar Board member Burt Eichler (founding partner of the law firm Brach Eichler). He has continued to support the agency over the years and in 2019 joined the event committee to spearhead its 2019 Steps to Independence Celebration, which is the organization’s largest fundraising event of the year, with honorees including many of the leading figures in New Jersey’s real estate industry. After three years of serving on the committee, Jeff agreed to be the honoree for the 2022 event. 

“Philanthropy has always been incredibly important to me, and as a father and a grandfather, the mission of helping children across the state of New Jersey is close to my heart,” said Milanaik. “The work that Pillar Care does is incredible, and their longstanding mission has helped countless families, supporting those with special needs in a way that facilitates access to better resources and the opportunity to live more enriched lives. I encourage everyone to donate to this amazing cause in hopes of reaching my personal fundraising goal of $2 million and I’m eager to see the impact we can make throughout 2023.”

For more information about Pillar Care, its mission, and its impact, visit www.pillarnj.org. For volunteering opportunities or for general inquiries, please contact Corry DeMarco at 973-821-8114 or cdemarco@pillarnj.org. To donate, visit www.pillarnj.org/donate or contact Evan Whitenack at ewhitenack@pillarnj.org.