T’is the Season for Food and Fellowship
Nothing makes the Curtis Team more excited than giving back to the Tulsa community. Whether serving meals at the Community Food Bank or stocking the pantry at John 3:16, we’ve noticed that volunteering together doesn’t just help our neighbors, it promotes unity and empathy within our team.
Teams Who Give Together Grow Together
United Way of Tulsa says “individuals who volunteer in their community are 30 percent happier and satisfied with their lives,” and that “companies who incorporate volunteerism in the workplace report a higher level of employee satisfaction, morale and team effectiveness.”
Volunteering has been a long-standing tradition at Curtis and we can certainly attest to how well it builds teams and makes us feel more fulfilled. We find it so helpful that a few years ago, we created the Curtis Cares program to allow employees to use volunteer hours to serve their community instead of vacation hours. We also host an annual Curtis Cares outing where we serve a local organization together which creates lasting memories.
We know 2020 has been especially hard on some Oklahomans so we reached out to a few of our favorite nonprofits to see what they need and how things will be different in regards to Covid precautions.
Pantries and Food Banks Have A Greater Need This Year
The Community Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma needs help packaging 15,000 meals that culinary staff is preparing weekly to go out to partner agencies. They have two shifts:
Tuesday – Friday | 9 to noon
Tuesday – Thursday | 1 to 4 p.m.
It is a fun, fast-paced activity that everyone can enjoy but you will need to wear masks and acquire a free volunteer food permit. They will supply gloves, hairnets, and, if needed, masks. Reach out here to get the permit or more information.
Ten for Tin
To give you even more reason to give, we’re offering 10% off smallwares when you donate a #10 food can to our food drive benefitting the Community Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma. From now until Dec. 21, give a tin and get 10 percent off your small wares. This discount can’t be combined with other offers and is only good on in-stock smallwares.
More Virtual and Online Giving Options
Some organizations said they would love for groups and individuals to host Virtual Food Drives where you can purchase things to be delivered to them. Throw some cans in your Amazon cart for Iron Gate or toys in your Target or Walmart basket for Salvation Army. You could make it a Team Challenge to see who can get the most people to add things to their online shopping carts.
Even the Red Kettle has virtual ringing options this year. Salvation Army gave us lots of good information for companies to get involved this year.
Red Kettles and Angel Trees
There are plenty of fun ways for employees to give from the safety of their home and you could host a party in your restaurant or venue to announce the winners. Could you host a Red Kettle Ringer challenge where employees have a ringing relay? What if you hosted an Angel Tree Toy Drive challenge to give toys to kids for Christmas? Team challenges are not only fun but they make great social content as well.
After You Give, Be Sure to Get Feedback
Wherever you decide to give, check in with your team after the event – either with an emailed survey or just a casual group discussion. Getting feedback from the team helps unify the team prevents employee turnover, plus it helps you improve the process for next year.
Let us know how it goes! Reach out on social or email if this post helped. We love hearing from you.
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