A Season of Hope and Community Impact
For many, the holiday season is synonymous with giving back. This sentiment rang true throughout Bolton & Menk locations across the region, showcasing our community impact through various initiatives.
Raking the Town in Mankato
The Mankato location kicked off the giving season by grabbing a rake and heading to local neighborhoods. In partnership with the nonprofit Vine, more than 500 community members joined this local effort, clearing leaves from the lawns of more than 100 disabled and elderly community members.
“The visual communications group was super excited to participate in the Rake the Town event,” said administrative assistant Joie Weller. “It was a great opportunity for us to give back to our community. Plus, if there’s ever an opportunity for some fresh air and sunshine, we take it!”
“I think this event is special because it allows a direct connection to the people you are serving and getting to hear their stories while giving back in a meaningful way,” said video production specialist Joshua Kloster.
We’re grateful to our leadership team for encouraging community outreach with Mankato residents and we’re looking forward to participating again next year.
Feeding the Community of Burnsville
Meanwhile, employees from the Burnsville location gathered family and friends before heading to Feed My Starving Children, furthering our community impact by contributing to the organization’s 2024 totals.
Founded in 1987, this Minnesota-based non-profit hosts food packing events with the goal of eliminating starvation in children throughout the world. Our volunteer team helped contribute to Feed My Starving Children’s 2024 totals, with more than 377 million meals sent to 58 countries around the world. At their volunteer event alone, the group packed 102 boxes, guaranteeing 60 kids will receive a daily meal for a year.
Transportation design engineer Phuc Vinh has attended this annual event for multiple years with his team and keeps coming back. “It is a meaningful event because I feel like I’m contributing a small part to help underprivileged children. Moreover, this event is also an opportunity for our team to hang out, and I have the chance to get to know more awesome people around me!”
Santa’s Helpers in Fargo
Teammates in Fargo worked hard to pack Santa’s sleigh. Serving children and families in Cass and Clay Counties of North Dakota and Minnesota, The Great North Pole has hosted this annual event for the last seven years.
“Picture hundreds of elves (volunteers) coming together for five days, to fill stockings (boxes) into Santa’s sleigh (your car),” said transportation design engineer Ryan Genz. “This helps provide our community members with not only basic needs but also winter gear and gifts for the children of these families.”
Throughout the program’s history, The Great North Pole has supported 511 families during the holiday season with more than 5,298 participating volunteers.
Reflecting on the importance of this event, Genz says, “I participate because it is inspiring to see how our communities come together to give back to our friends and neighbors that need a little extra help during the holiday season.”
Friendly Competition in Charlotte
A friendly competition never hurt anybody! Our Charlotte location provided Second Harvest Food Bank with food donations, and many teammates also volunteered their time at the food bank. The food processed in this location is sent out to more than 24 counties between North Carolina and South Carolina and is sent to more than 950 partner agencies for distribution. With four days and 3–4-hour shifts, the office was in full swing, separating and sorting foods in the food bank to ensure it was ready to leave to the recipients in need.
“I enjoyed volunteering very much; I left Second Harvest feeling good about the time we had spent sorting and organizing the food donations,” said administrative assistant Jaqi Feicht. The office collected donations for a month, and the work groups were feeling competitive, eager to win the bragging rights for donating the most. In total, more than 508 pounds of food were donated, with the transportation team contributing the most. Overall, it was a great experience for everyone involved and highlighted our community impact for local families in need.
Spreading Joy Through Community Impact in Greenville
Our Greenville team participated in the Project Joy- United Way program of adopting a family for the holidays. It was such a success the team not only adopted a family but decided to make an event out of it!
“It was great to give back to our local Greenville community. I particularly enjoyed having an excuse to check out the latest and greatest in RC monster trucks,” said water resources project engineer Ben Lord after buying a requested monster truck for one of the children.
The Greenville culture team decided to turn the task of wrapping and labeling gifts into an event to kick off the holiday season. The conference room was quickly transformed into a holiday wonderland! There was a gift-wrapping station, a competitive cookie contest featuring unique flavors like sesame chocolate chip and yeast gingerbread, a hot chocolate station, and the team decorated the office. To top it all off, the gifts were placed under the tree, officially bringing the holiday spirit to the office.
The Project Joy initiative, launched in 2020, has seen increasing participation each year. Last year, the program doubled in size, providing special gifts to more than 700 families.
Charitable Community Impact in Raleigh
During the Raleigh team holiday party, a friendly competition was held, offering highly sought-after prizes and, most importantly, supporting the local community. The culture committee added a raffle to the holiday gathering, featuring prizes such as a Samsung TV, a spa gift certificate, a local restaurant gift certificate, and a wine basket. The more money you donated, the more tickets you received, increasing your chances of winning a great prize.
“We couldn’t have been more thrilled with the turnout and the spirit at our Christmas party this year. The incredible raffle donations we received highlight the generosity and amity that define our team,” said administrative coordinator Kim McCullough. At the end of the raffle, the office made $870 that was donated between local organizations—the Raleigh Rescue Mission, Western Carolina Emergency Network and Friends of Wake County Animal Shelter. “Together, we’ve not only celebrated another year of success, but also made a significant impact in our community,” Kim said.
Meals on Wheels in Conway
The purpose of Meals on Wheels of Horry County is to provide nutrition, compassion, and hope to families that have been classified as homebound, elderly, or terminally ill. The local Meals on Wheels program does not charge for their services, is 100 percent funded by donations, and serves more than 500 client’s “grandparents” in the area.
The Conway location was a proud sponsor to the Third Annual Meals on Wheels Gala, furthering our community impact by supporting a program that provides to families in need.
“I saw people regularly donate not only their time and personal resources but give some much-needed encouragement to a sometimes-forgotten group of people. Being a part of Meals and Wheels, I’ve had the chance to give hope and encouragement back to those who helped build our community,” said administrative assistant Christy Walsh.
As we reflect on the past quarter, we’re proud of our teammates and their commitment to meaningful community impact. Giving back is at the heart of what we do, and our employees live and breathe this part of our mission. Together, we can continue to make a difference in the lives of our neighbors, one community at a time.