Reflection on Our Year of Philanthropy
It’s every parent’s worst nightmare, being told your child has a rare form of cancer. Ava Rose Byrne was the apple of her mom’s eye, at 22 months old, she was diagnosed with a rare form of childhood cancer called Neuroblastoma. Ava’s treatment plan became a thirteen-month long road of intense chemotherapy, surgery, radiation, and immunotherapy. Unfortunately, after fifteen months, Ava’s cancer relapsed and the treatment was too much, in September 2017, Ava gained her angel wings. Now, Ava’s mom, Leanne works tirelessly to honor her daughter’s memory. It is a story that hits home for many of us, these tragedies can often be felt by the families who have been affected and, in the communities, they live in. The story of Ava was told to us by our own Performance Industrial team member, Josh Menzies, who is part of our epoxy team. Ava’s Mom, Leanne, is his fiancée, and as part of the Performance Industrial family, we helped rally support for their efforts to keep the memory of her child, Ava Rose Byrne alive and strong! Throughout the month of November, the Performance Industrial team set out to support Josh and Leanne’s efforts! Together we began gathering gifts and donations to deliver to the Ronald McDonald House. The Ronald McDonald House Charities holds a special place in Leanne’s heart, it gave her hope, love, and compassion as she walked the darkest days of her life. Thanks to community outpouring of support, Leanne and Josh gave back when they delivered a large truckload on Thanksgiving Day!
Performance Industrial makes it our concerted effort to give back to the community where we operate, and where we have the greatest impact. Providing local support through volunteering and community programs, along with charitable giving efforts, are essential to being an active member of our community! These efforts enrich the community and our own operations! Not only are they the just thing to do, but they also help foster greater employee engagement and sense of purpose, as well as create a meaningful connection to our community! The benefits are clear, but there are some things our leaders keep in mind before giving back. Here are a few guiding principles for our corporate giving – a key element of how we track our businesses’ charitable efforts!
1. Find Out What Our Community Needs
Performance Industrial is deeply passionate about issues that affect our employees, customers, or community! That’s why it is important to us to start by asking our community about what they need. Bill Miller, for example, launched our Real Men Wear Pink Traveling Golf League last year when he spoke with a buddy who wanted to join a golf league but didn’t want to be at the same course every week. Bill took that idea and joined it with raising money to support the Real Men Wear Pink campaign and the American Cancer Society! More than $30,000 was raised thanks to this partnership between two local companies, Performance Industrial and Novus Clothing Company. As a result, a team of men in the Capital Region found a fun, creative way to raise awareness for breast cancer, and money to support the fight against the disease. A win, win for all!
2. Involve Our Team
Our employees live in the communities where our company operate, so asking them for support in identifying important causes is essential! At Performance Industrial, we provide opportunities for employees to engage closely with the charitable giving process. These initiatives allow our employees to identify what causes matter most to them. As a result, they become more deeply engaged with the charitable giving process, support local charitable efforts, and find greater purpose at work. For instance, our company has been apart of the Real Men Wear Pink campaign for past three years. Every October, our crews adorn “Pink” and help drive donations! As a result, our company has raised over ninety thousand dollars over the past three years!
3. How it Benefited Our Community
The act of giving is deeply important, but it is also essential to assess whether the charitable efforts served their intended purpose. Performance Industrial aims to not simply push money toward an issue, but collaboratively work with community leaders to ensure that contributions are having a meaningful impact. Here are the results of our Real Men Wear Pink campaigns over the past three years:
At Performance Industrial, our commitment to community is the fabric of who we are. We are always working to uncover ways to help those around us. From raising money for cancer research to feeding families at Thanksgiving, our goal is to care about the community we serve in.
4. American Cancer Society, Real Men Wear Pink Campaign,
As we near the end of 2022, like many, we look forward to a new year beginning! This last year we made a huge impact on our community through our support of all these great organizations throughout the year! We look forward to continuing this tradition in 2023!
