Giving Back to Our Community
While establishing employee volunteer programs is an obvious way for companies to give back to their communities, they also serve as a powerful employee engagement tool. Volunteerism is not new at Nulty – in fact, several years ago, we formed a committee, NEEDS (Nulty Employees Exhibiting Deeds of Service) who eagerly took the lead to identify and organize company-sponsored volunteer activities for our employees to participate in throughout the year. We built our program around our company values and yet allowed employees the freedom to choose charitable activities that are a meaningful connection to them.
Nulty has embodied a ‘work hard, play hard, give back’ culture and employees have responded enthusiastically! In addition to activities organized by the company, employees are encouraged to take up to eight paid work hours throughout the year to volunteer at charities of their choosing. Our program has helped the Nulty team members view volunteering as an important aspect of their job (not just something that they do in their spare time), strengthening their sense of purpose at work and building relationships with one another that are more meaningful and supportive.
2019 Day of Caring
This year, we ‘raised the bar’ and dedicated an entire day to contribute within our community. On Monday, January 21st, we launched our inaugural Day of Caring event! We closed all Nulty offices for the day and spent several fun-filled and rewarding hours helping our friends at Kalamazoo Loaves & Fishes and the Kalamazoo Gospel Mission. Whether we were sorting clothes, organizing the treasures within the store or preparing food for the pantries, one thing is for certain; we served in Nulty fashion – our hearts were full, our smiles were wide and our tummies all hurt from laughter. It was a very special day, as it reminded us how fortunate we are to work at a company that really cares about its employees, customers and community!
The following are some employee thoughts and comments from our 2019 Day of Caring…
“I enjoyed my day, I felt that it was very nice that we were giving back to the community. I was at the women’s shelter and washed walls and baseboards in the hallways and common areas. We did have a few women tell us thank you. The Mission staff all thanked us numerous times, that made me feel good to know we were helping them as well.” – Heather Myers, CISR
“Nulty Day of Caring was a real eye-opening, humbling, experience as I hung clothes for the thrift shop. The amount of time spent was not enough to even put a dent in the donations that are taken in by the Gospel Mission. We could have, easily, had all our employees in that one area for the entire day and still not put out all the donations for re-sale. Granted, I don’t think there would have been enough racks to hang it all on…..” – Sarah Thomas, CISR
“I worked at the Kalamazoo Loaves & Fishes on our day of caring, it was an amazingly, positive experience on so many levels, we sorted fruit & packed it in boxes and then we made bags for kids that may not get a meal when they get home those consisted of packing juice boxes, corn, fruit, ravioli, granola bar, instant oatmeal & cheerios into a plastic bag and tying them shut, we were told they go through 800 a week so our team made a pact to get 800 done in our allotted time frame and we did it!
The warehouse leader was so thankful and appreciative throughout our time there, I remember thinking how great it was that he repeatedly made us feel needed and appreciated!
The day made my heart so full, makes you realize how such a small amount of your time can make a huge difference!” – Kelli Drobny
“I worked in the Women’s Shelter. We cleaned walls and mopped floors. When we walked through the recreation center at the end of the day, it was amazing how much cleaner it looked and smelled than when we first came in. Cleaning was important, but more important was our interaction with the women, and especially with their children. All of us had some interaction but Cassie was the “kid magnet” – they LOVED her! She spent a great deal of time talking to children who came up to her. Apparently, she is very approachable. Because it was a snow day and there was no school, there were more children around than normally are during the day.
The supervisor in the women’s shelter told me how grateful she was for our help. There just isn’t the manpower to get this cleaning done. She said there are times she has had to do it herself after her normal working hours. Because we were there, she was able to interact and help the women. Great experience!” – Ann Kuiper, CPCU, AIM