Making Waves

Born in Bermuda,Greg Frith moved with his family to Fort Myers in 1971, hoping to turn the "land of opportunity" brochure slogan into a reality. Today he's in charge of business development at FireService Disaster Kleenup-a far cry from his high school days when he'd help the company owner's son pull wet carpets out of houses.

"We were all band geeks at Fort Myers High School, but now we run a big company," Frith says with a laugh.

With offices in North Port, Fort Myers and Naples, the 30-year-old company employs about 100 people. It provides 24-hour disaster repair resulting from fire, flood, mold, biohazards and vandalism.

Those employees, with Frith leading the charge, show zeal in community service. Recognized as a Hometown Hero and American Cancer Society Volunteer of the Year, Frith has helped implement the Lee County chapter of the American Cancer Society and Relay for Life events in Cape Coral, Fort Myers Beach and Pine Island. His company has provided equipment and manpower for the relay events for the past six years. The company also donates to 16 charities every month, ranging from local organizations such as E.C.H.O. to national charities and Christian camps.

Frith believes the local chambers have helped him strike a balance between community giving and networking. He has served as the treasurer of the Greater Fort Myers chamber and on the Cape Coral and Christian chamber boards.

"People do business with people they like, and you have to get out there and get known," says Frith. "The chambers provide a way to give back; you meet nice people and you get to help out a lot of organizations."

Words of advice: "You live here, so you may as well do something to make the community better," he says.