Macy's: Partners in Time

Macy's Inc. employee volunteer program, Partners in Time, was founded in 1989, and has been recognized for its excellence, receiving an "Award for Excellent in Workplace Volunteerism" by the Points of Light Foundation.

In 2009 alone, Macy's Inc. employee volunteers gave almost 100,000 hours to community organizations, with the largest percentage devoted to projects benefiting children.


Partners in Time also spearheads the annual "Bag Hunger" campaign conducted all across Macy’s divisions, has contributed an equivalent 58 million pounds of food, or 45 million meals, for hungry families throughout the United States.

Weyerhaeuser: Making WAVES

Weyerhaeuser's Making Waves program, administered through the Weyerhaeuser Company Foundation, promoted employee volunteerism throughout the organization. In 2009, 1,017 employees worked on 89 projects and contributed 10,714 volunteer hours. Through this program, grant monies -- almost $4 million since 1998 -- are also made available to local non-profit organizations, municipal agencies, and schools.

At their March 8 Spirit of Caring Celebration, the United Way of King County recognized the Making Waves program as the 2011 outstanding Employee Volunteer Program. According to their statement, "employees identify a need in their community and work with a nonprofit or school to develop a project" with Weyerhauser providing support and training to company volunteers.

According to the Making WAVES website, recent projects completed by volunteers have included:

• Building low-cost homes with Habitat for Humanity
• Beautifying local schools, parks and streams
• Rebuilding communities in the Gulf area following Hurricane Katrina
• Working with youth as mentors and tutors
• Collecting donations for local food and clothing banks
• Participating in fundraising events such as the American Cancer Society's Relay for Life and the March of Dimes Foundation's WalkAmerica
• Providing nonprofits with business expertise in areas such as strategic planning and technology
• Planting trees or restoring and enhancing native ecosystems
• Mentoring youth on sustainable forests practices

United Way of King County 2011 Spirit of Caring Winners

Bayer: Making Science Make Sense

Bayer's "Making Science Make Sense" program was foreshadowed 40 years ago when employee volunteers started helping students and their teachers learn about science they way it was done in actual research laboratories. They describe the MSMS, which was officially launched in 1995 as follows:

As a science- and research-based company with major businesses in health care, nutrition and innovative materials, Bayer Corporation has a strong stake in helping to improve science education and to insure that all individuals are scientifically literate. Bayer demonstrates this commitment with its national award-winning Making Science Make Sense® (MSMS) program, a company-wide initiative that advances science literacy across the United States through hands-on, inquiry-based science learning, employee volunteerism and public education.

On March 18, MSMS launched a Facebook page to promote science and math education. Although many MSMS resources are available online, the program is driven by committed employee volunteers.

Making Science Make Sense on Facebook
About Making Science Make Sense

Herman Miller Relief Efforts

Natural disasters demand immediate, drastic response from businesses, especially those that can provide needed services or supplies. At the same time, these responses are often removed from most employees since the decisions are often made at top levels with a speed that precludes involvement from all levels. Herman Miller's multi-pronged response to the tragedy in Japan allows employees to feel involved in the process. Herman Miller not only donated to Japan relief efforts, they are also matching employee donations. Additionally, they are donating 5% of online sales to the American Red Cross Japan Disaster Relief Fund.

Wal-Mart Workers Aid Operation Homefront

Wal-Mart employees volunteered to help Operation Homefront, an organization in Clarksville, Tennessee, that assists families of deployed soldiers. Because Wal-Mart's EVP matches volunteer hours with organizations, the NPO received a $4,000 donation.

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