Community involvement has always been at the core of our firm’s values. One of the ways that we choose to be active in our community is through our annual United Way Campaign. This year, our campaign ran throughout the month of October and was themed “Supporting One of Our Own”. Because October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and, earlier this year, one of our employees was diagnosed with this type of cancer, we felt this theme fitting.
This year, we exceeded our planned goal and were able to raise $11,860 for United Way and had 100% employee participation!
One of our partners, Don DeLong, is actively involved in the Gulu Uganda Country Dairy Project. If employee’s donated $1,000 towards Partners Worldwide, he agreed to match this. This was achieved, and has allowed Brickley DeLong to donate a cow to the farm!
In addition to this, we had a supplementary collection for Mercy Health Comprehensive Breast Center. Our kitchens were full of many baked goods and snacks that employees could purchase for this cause. The firm also sold breast cancer awareness pins, and employees had the option to donate money and wear jeans on Fridays. On October 22, we had a firm wide “Pink Day”. All employees were encouraged to wear pink in support of breast cancer awareness. Overall, we were able to collect over $1,000 specifically for this cause.
To celebrate our achievement, on October 31st, we had a potluck in all offices. This included auctioning off four gift baskets. Each of these baskets was themed (spa basket, ice cream basket, Movie night basket, and Jack and Coke Cake). There was also a bidding war between employees for, what we named, “The Tower”. Ed Elsner, was our highest bidder and the money was added to our Mercy Health donation.
Brickley DeLong has always encouraged and supported employees in their unique roles in the community. Our annual United Way campaign is just one way that we choose to give back, and in a fun way.
I invite you to visit our community involvement page to learn more about how our activity in West Michigan.