Every day, volunteers strengthen our local communities. Whether painting the hallways of schools, helping young families file their taxes or offering their time and leadership skills to serve on local nonprofit boards, they are the boots-on-the-ground force of the Live United movement, and together, they are shaping the future of our region.
Last month, we applauded stellar employee volunteer programs during the first annual Greater Philadelphia Corporate Volunteer Council (GPCVC) Member Awards +Celebration. Not only did we highlight individual volunteer efforts but also those of member companies in strengthening and supporting volunteerism as a key focus of their success. Those members honored included:
• Member of the Year: Independence Blue Cross –Last year, 1,300 volunteers from the Blue Crew logged 11,000 hours on 300 projects. This was a record year for the Blue Crew as they increased their volunteer participation by 33%!
• New Member of the Year: AmeriHealth Caritas – AmeriHealth Care Crew’s 600 volunteers logged more than 2,000 hours in 2017. The Care Crew was officially launched in April 2017 during National Volunteer Week.
• Small Business member of the Year: RevZilla –Locally, 58 volunteers from RevZilla logged 520 hours on 14 projects including a new partnership to assist inmates with job readiness training and computer literacy along with several education initiatives at the Taggart Elementary School.
• Innovation Award: The Philadelphia Eagles - Eagles Charitable Foundation has provided more than 81,000 free eye exams and 56,000 free eyeglasses to children in need in our community in conjunction with the city-wide Read By 4th campaign providing services in schools with the support from Lincoln Financial Group and Santander.
• IMPACT 2030 Award: IBM - Currently, more than 270,000 IBM employees volunteer around the world in more than 170 countries. In 2017, they surpassed 20 million volunteer hours. IBM has been a leader of IMPACT 2030, a global private sector-led initiative to activate employee volunteer programs to advance the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The City of Philadelphia also recognized the GPCVC for their leadership in strengthening the connection between the business community and the nonprofit sector. Mayor Jim Kenney presented a special citation for the GPCVC’s work in bridging the divide between the need for volunteer manpower and the desire of individuals to serve the community – efforts that include collectively mobilizing 35,509 volunteers, logging 272,806 volunteer hours and completing 1,882 unique projects.
The GPCVC is open to all corporate and small businesses in the greater Philadelphia region with an active or emerging employee engagement program. Learn more about GPCVC membership and its benefits.
View the GPCVC’s Playbook for IMPACT 2030, launched at the event.