Proud of our community service
I am constantly proud of all you who support community service. Year after year, we devote much time, talent, and funding to our Give Back Community Service Program. We support numerous causes that make life better for families, children, senior citizens, US military veterans, the homeless, and those needing help to recover from natural disasters around the world.
More than $79,000 in funds in 2016
Our Give Back program had a particularly strong year in 2016. In case you missed it, last month the employee newsletter reported that our community service program raised $79,143.59 that funded 71 projects last year! This happens thanks to your support of various campaigns throughout the year, and the company match of dollar for dollar of every dollar raised.
Our largest monetary donation of $12,000 went to The Thirst Project to fund building another well in Swaziland. Just as impressive is our donation of $200 to Teachers’ Treasures in Indianapolis that went farther than we could have imagined. This organization distributes $15 in classroom supplies to schools in need for every dollar it receives. Our $200 turned into $3,000 in product for Indianapolis-area classrooms. To learn about all the causes we supported last year, follow this link.
Volunteer hours make a difference too
Your volunteer hours make a difference too. The best example of this is the impact of our volunteers participating in Day of Service events in Columbus and Indianapolis. Last April, our Columbus employees packed 711 box of food at the Mid-Ohio Food Bank. This equaled 711 weeks of food for food bank clients. Indianapolis employees processed 18,125 pounds of items donated to Gleaners Food Bank. Those donations provided over 15,000 meals for people throughout Indiana.
Please consider payroll deduction
To make your Give Back contributions count all-year-round, I urge you to consider the payroll deduction option. The Community Service team has been working hard to shift participation from annual holiday giving to a more balanced giving schedule so that the company can respond to employee-suggested needs throughout the year. Today, roughly 30 percent of our employees use the payroll deduction option. The Community Service team remains committed to its goal of achieving 50-percent participation in payroll contributions to honor our 50th anniversary. For those of you already enrolled in payroll deduction, THANK YOU. And to those who would like start, check out the 50% @50 logo on the front page of our intranet to sign up.