Cooper Hurley Injury Lawyers’ Vote for a School Contest to Award $5,000 to a Hampton Roads School

To celebrate the start of the new school year and support our local educators, Cooper Hurley Injury Lawyers is donating $5,000 to a Hampton Roads elementary, middle, or high school this September through its Vote for a School contest.

The public or private school located in Hampton Roads or the Eastern Shore that receives the most votes from the community by September 21st will receive the $5,000 donation from the Norfolk-based personal injury law firm. The winning school may use the funds at their discretion.

“It means the world to us to be able to give back to our community,” said Griffin O’Hanlon, partner and injury attorney at Cooper Hurley Injury Lawyers.

“Most of our attorneys and staff grew up in Hampton Roads, and our children and families are better because of the dedicated schools, educators, and administrators throughout our region. We’re just honored to be able to donate this $5,000 to a deserving school, and we are excited for our friends in neighbors around Hampton Roads to get involved.”

With the onset and resurgence of the Covid-19 pandemic, support for local schools is now more important than ever. Data from the Virginia Department of Education reports that Hampton Roads school enrollment dropped by more than 4.5% in 2020, more than eight times the annual average. While we do not yet know whether enrollment numbers have continued to drop with the start of the 2021-2022 school year, it is apparent that the pandemic will have lasting implications on student learning and outcomes.

Cooper Hurley Injury Lawyers’ charitable arm, Cooper Hurley Injury Lawyers Cares, has a strong emphasis on supporting education and helping young people throughout Hampton Roads. The firm acknowledges the impact that the pandemic has had on education and has donated to numerous schools and student-focused organizations throughout the past year and a half as a result.

At the start of the 2020-2021 school year, Cooper Hurley Injury Lawyers surprised Larrymore Elementary School in Norfolk with a $5,000 donation for the purchase of student laptops and Wi-Fi devices. This donation inspired the idea of Vote for a School.

Since then, the firm has donated $2,000 to Maury High School for its Cap and Gown Day, $500 to Nansemond River High School for sanitizer dispensers and refills, and $5,000 (the equivalent of 12,500 meals) to the Foodbank of Southeastern Virginia and the Eastern Shore.

Partner Bill O’Mara, a graduate of Indian River High School in Chesapeake, also recently returned to the Home of the Braves to make a donation of $2,500 from Cooper Hurley Injury Lawyers.

“I’m a proud class of 2000 graduate of Indian River High School,” O’Mara told Principal Naomi Dunbar. “My wife graduated from Indian River High School, my siblings graduated from Indian River High School, and my father substitute teaches here from time to time.”

In addition to donations and sponsorships, the Cooper Hurley Injury Lawyers awards annual scholarships to students who address the issue of distracted driving and present ideas to combat it via multi-media presentations. This year’s 2021 Focused Driver Scholarship Recipients received a total of $12,000 in scholarships.

To nominate a school to receive the $5,000 award from Cooper Hurley Injury Lawyers, Hampton Roads residents should visit our nomination page. Voting ends on September 21^st, and the winner of Vote for a School will be announced on the firm’s Facebook page on September 24^th at noon.

As Cooper Hurley Injury Lawyers helps those injured in car, truck, and motorcycle accidents as well as other serious injury and wrongful death claims, the firm will continue to give Hampton Roads the support it deserves. For more information, contact Cooper Hurley Injury Lawyers.