Corporate Work 'Switch' for Charity
2 April 2003 at 1:04 pm
Two of Melbourne’s larger corporate offices were a little quieter recently when over 270 employee volunteers from Esso and Mobil swapped their suits for work-boots in a unique community partnership.
The corporate volunteers joined with the Lord Mayor’s Charitable Fund (LMCF) to provide a helping hand to 15 Melbourne community care organisations.
Coordinated by the LMCF, the employees spent the day volunteering with a broad range of non-profit organisations, from Guide Dogs Victoria through to Melbourne Citymission and smaller charities such as Breakaway Camps for disadvantaged youth.
Over 2,100 work-hours were contributed to activities like gardening, painting and packing Christmas toys, or preparing food for Melbourne’s homeless.
Des Blake, the Chief Executive Officer of the LMCF says the project is a benchmark example of practical corporate philanthropy investing, through its people, in grassroots community care.
Robert Olsen, the Chairman, Esso Australia and Mobil Oil Australia says the companies were very proud to partner with the Lord Mayor’s Fund to provide a variety of community organisations with a ‘tangible helping hand’.
As a company Olsen says Esso and Mobil Oil Australia have a long history of community involvement and are delighted that its employees have responded so generously and enthusiastically to this program.
Olsen says the primary goal has been to establish relationships with new community care groups and give employees the chance to get involved in volunteering.
But he says the companies are finding there is also another benefit emerging, Working together to complete really worthwhile projects, with colleagues they would not normally see in their daily jobs, is reinforcing the sense of community and teamwork within Esso and Mobil.
Des Blake says he hopes more companies commit themselves, and empower their people to donate their resources to community care agencies. The benefits of this project will stretch well beyond this one “Day of Caring” to strengthen the spirit of community and business generosity which has for so long been a quintessential attribute of Melbourne life.
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