Philanthropy

Since our founding, it has always been a part of J.R. Dunn's mission to give back to the community.

This notion is something that was first instilled upon Co-Founder James "Jim" Dunn since he was young by his mother, who was a single mother and visiting nurse who worked double shifts just to put food on the table for Jim and his brother, Donald. Jim and Ann Marie knew they were fortunate to build a successful business in the community, and so they decided to support them right back and pay it forward.

J.R. Dunn is proud to support so many amazing causes, from the Boys & Girls Clubs to our local Humane Society, our First Responders, veteran causes, and so many more. From their humble beginnings in a small farm town in Massachusetts to a successful multi-generational family-owned business today in the heart of South Florida, the Dunn’s will never forget their roots and always remember the importance of giving back where it counts.

“Giving back has always been something that we are very passionate about.” – Jim Dunn

The Boys & Girls Club of Broward County
In 1996, Jim Dunn founded Dunn’s Run, an annual 5k walk/run or 5-mile run that takes place on the first Sunday in October in Deerfield Beach, raising over $3 million to benefit the Boys & Girls Clubs of Broward County.

Benefitting the Boys and Girls Club of Broward County

The Dunn's Run

We have been a longtime supporter of our local Boys & Girls Club, raising over $3 million dollars in our 25-year partnership. “We’ve been very fortunate in being able to build a good business in Broward County and my wife and I wanted to give back to the community. I visited a Boys and Girls Club in Hollywood and found that it was an unbelievable opportunity to help young people”, said Jim Dunn.

For Jim, it was about giving kids in the community a safer place to learn and play that meant so much to him. Jim and Jan Moran along with Rick and Rita Case were great influences inspiring the partnership with the Boys & Girls Clubs supporting our community. During his tour of the Boys & Girls Club in Hollywood, he was so touched by all the kids there—they were so polite and thankful to have a nice place to go to where they can learn, do activities, and play sports together. In partnering with the Boys & Girls Clubs of Broward County, Jim’s connection with the community grew strong.

“We never imagined it would grow to more than 2,000 participants. It thrills us to see so many people and businesses invest their time and resources into the future of our kids”, said Jim.

You can sign up for this year’s Dunn’s Run here, and Run for Jim!

In 2018, Jim and Ann Marie were inducted into the Boys & Girls Clubs of Broward County Hall of Fame, a milestone of the contributions we have been able to accomplish together for our community.

Ocean Conservancy

J.R. Dunn is a proud supporter of Ocean Conservancy and its mission to protect our oceans, one of the greatest global challenges we face today. Being in the heart of South Florida, the ocean surrounds not only our coastlines but also our economy, our air, our food supply, and so much more. It's always been something near and dear to the Dunn's hearts as well as our team's and clientele.

In 2018, J.R. Dunn teamed up with Ocean Conservancy and Breitling for an exclusive launch party, releasing Breitling's limited edition Ocean Conservancy timepiece benefitting the cause. With every Breitling sold, a portion of the proceeds went directly to the charity. We even brought in talented local oceanic photographer, Ben Hicks, with his artwork showcasing the beauty of our ocean.

When you shop on JRDUNN.com you can give back 5% of your order to our partners at Ocean Conservancy to support this mission.

Feeding America

In the beginning of the global pandemic outbreak in 2020, we knew we had to come together and support those who needed it most. We launched our Shopping Gives initiative, giving back 5% of all orders on JRDUNN.com and raised over $29,000 in just over a month! For every one dollar donated, 10 families in need were provided with food through their nationwide network of food banks, food pantries, and shelters.

Since launching the program, we have raised an additional 10,0000 for the cause and counting.

The Humane Society of Broward County
In October of 2015, J.R. Dunn teamed up with our local Humane Society of Broward County forming our adoption program, Diamond in the Ruff. “Ann Marie and I felt like there were animals that were being overlooked for adoption, animals that were wonderful inside but maybe needed a little extra something to get noticed,” said Jim.

Benefitting the Humane Society of Broward County

Diamond in the Ruff

Animals have always been very near and dear to our hearts at J.R. Dunn. Our Co-Founder Jim grew up helping his Mom raise boxer puppies, where his love for dogs originated from.

“We had every hope that the program would be successful, and we’re beyond pleased to have been able to continue it for so many years.” Every week, a different animal is selected to be named our “Diamond” and J.R. Dunn sponsors the adoption fee. Since its initiation, hundreds of cats, dogs, rabbits, ferrets and more have been adopted because of our program.

The Dunn’s are also longtime members of the Diamond Collar Society, a group of donors in our South Florida community who share the belief in the importance of finding good homes for all abandoned animals and educated others about kindness to all animals. With the introduction of jrdunn.com’s Shopping Gives program we’ve been able to donate an additional $4,000 to the Humane Society of Broward County and counting! We just love our pups and kitties!

Shopping Gives

We are proud to support many amazing causes not just in our direct community but also around the world. In 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, jrdunn.com launched its Shopping Gives initiative, allowing 5% of online sales to go to a charity of the client's choosing.

“We’ve always been very involved with our local charities in our community, but our new Shopping Gives feature allowed us to expand beyond what our normal reach would be. Being stuck at home during COVID, we knew we wanted to have something there so our clients could treat themselves but still feel good about it”, said Sean Dunn.

It allowed us the ability to not just support charities that meant something to us as a company, but also ones that our clients are personally connected with. Since its launch, we are proud to have raised over $112,000 for over 264 unique non-profit organizations like Feeding America, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Ocean Conservancy, National Breast Cancer Foundation Inc., and more.

Habitat for Humanity

J.R. Dunn is proud to become a part of the Habitat for Humanity Broward County family, helping make homeownership possible in our community. Co-Founder of J.R. Dunn Jewelers, Ann Marie Dunn, is proud to be a part of the 2022 Habitat for Humanity Rita Case Women’s Build, building and dedicating a home to a family who needs it at the Rick Case Habitat Community in Pompano Beach.

Honoring our Heroes & First Responders
A notion that has always been at our core is honoring our heroes, whether it be our brave veterans, military, first responders, police officers, doctors, nurses, paramedics—you name it. J.R. Dunn is also proud to offer a first responder discount, honoring our heroes for their braveness.

Benefitting our first responders, the Ryan Owens Memorial and Naked Warrior Project

Honoring our Heroes

We are proud supporters of the Naked Warrior Project, a non-profit foundation founded to memorialize and honor fallen Navy SEALs and Special Operations SOCOM/JSOC. The foundation was created in honor of William Ryan Owens, United States Navy SEAL senior chief petty officer who lost his life bravely in combat during a raid in Yemen, making him the first American to die in combat under the Trump administration. Owens great up in our South Florida community, and the project aims to build a memorial here to honor him and other fallen heroes.

Every year since its inception, J.R. Dunn has sponsored the non-profit's Annual Ryan Owens Memorial Dinner Auction, bringing together many brave veterans, active military and Navy SEALS, and other law enforcement and raising funds and awareness for fallen heroes' families.

Hope Bracelets
On the evening of March 27th in the beginning of the pandemic shutdown, J.R Dunn launched a giveaway on social media—the one thing keeping everyone connected with their friends and family.

They asked their followers to tag people they knew who are nurses and doctors fighting on the frontlines. In return, every healthcare worker tagged was given a white or black freshwater cultured pearl “Hope Bracelet” by Honora, absolutely free, to wear as a reminder that their community stands behind them in support.

Over just three days, the entire supply of 200 hope bracelets were allocated to their local South Florida healthcare workers as well as to many other areas across the country from New York City to California on the frontline.

“The idea was inspired by a local ICU Nurse, Mary McNerney, at Broward Health whose Facebook post about how the shortage of N95 masks was affecting those on the front line that went viral. The doctors and nurses are putting their patients' needs first and it really hit home the sacrifices they are making for all of us. Even though we didn’t have masks to give we wanted to do something to lift spirits and let them know they are appreciated”, says Sean Dunn, Co-owner and Vice President of J.R. Dunn.

Accompanied in the gift box along with the hope bracelet is a handwritten thank you note from Ann Marie Dunn, Co-Owner and President of J.R. Dunn Jewelers, thanking them for protecting our friends, families, and communities. Throughout the giveaway, an overwhelming number of stories and photos were shared of what they were going through in emergency rooms, ICU’s, clinics, and doctor offices across the country that touched the Dunn’s and entire J.R. Dunn team forever. During a time of uncertainty, we came together as a community to spread a little hope to those who needed it most.

Philanthropy