This Giving Tuesday has me thinking about giving back on a global scale, and all the ways that people can help improve their surroundings. With locally focused efforts being made around the world, Giving Tuesday is a chance for us to create a little bit of collective good.
But more than just on one day, it’s important to give back throughout the year — a belief that Silverline values deeply.
Pledge 1% movement
Like Salesforce, Silverline participates in the Pledge 1% movement. This means that we are a part of a growing movement to create a new normal — in which giving back is built into companies of all sizes from day one. Pledge 1% encourages and challenges individuals and companies to pledge 1% of equity, profit, product, and/or employee time for their communities.
Much of how we give occurs through our Silverline Cares initiative. We partner with Project Sunshine at our new hire orientation and regional events; our team comes together to build interactive kits for pediatric patients all over the country to enjoy.
But so many Silverliners go above and beyond — spending and lending their talent and time in different ways, both in person and online.
How Silverliners Give Back
Lindsay Lelivelt (your humble author), Content Strategist
Similar to Giving Tuesday, I love Give to the Max Day in Minnesota — a day when we Minnesotans open our hearts and our wallets to lots of great nonprofits in our communities. For many, it’s their biggest fundraising day of the year. Not only do I donate to local organizations annually (e.g., Feline Rescue, Coco’s Heart Dog Rescue, Pollen), but it’s a great resource for me to find groups that could use volunteers! Volunteering for me can be manual, on-site labor — but more often than not, these organizations need help with a little marketing and wordsmithing. It feels nice to use my skills to help good groups get their message out to more people.
I also volunteer as a mentor for students at my alma mater, Gustavus Adolphus College. I help them with career advice, mock interviews, resume reviews, and more.
Zach Baker, Change Readiness & Management Consultant
The Finley Project is a local nonprofit that my wife and I have been supporting for awhile now. A friend from high school started it and my sister works there as well. Their mission is to help moms and families who have experienced infant loss.
Jiordan Castle, Brand and Communications Manager
I’d like to highlight a little thing, particularly for people who feel they don’t have a ton of money to give in one go, or want to make a small impact in the everyday. I do it with Amazon Smile. By using smile.amazon.com (instead of the regular url), I can give back to my dog Hacksaw’s original rescue organization (SNORT) with every purchase. Sure, it goes to show how much money I give Amazon… but at least I’m giving a little to SNORT too!
Chelsea A. Peterson, Senior Executive Assistant
I do the same with Lyft by rounding up my rides to the next dollar, and donating that small amount to charities. Seamless does that, too!
I also use Lemonade for my renter’s insurance, who has a program called Giveback, wherein once a year, they tally up the unclaimed money left and they give back that unclaimed money (up to 40%!) to the various nonprofits of the insured folks’ choice.
Paul Vranas, Business Development Team Lead
I recently started volunteering as a mentor for an individual who has experienced homelessness and is in a nine-month program to gain the skills, stability, and self-esteem necessary to become a productive, self-sufficient member of society. It has changed my life.
Aileen McGrath, Client Services Manager
I have an obsessive compulsive volunteerism problem! I work with CASA (i.e., child advocates for displaced youth) on their annual Gala Committee (raising most of the operating capital for the year), as well as our local volunteer fire department, and the University of Houston Advisory Committee (CIS program advisory).
Rachel Brean, Account Executive
I volunteer with Built by Girls in NYC and mentor young women exploring a career in tech.
Sahil Kumar, Director, Senior Engagement Manager
I’m on the board of One Warm Coat, a nonprofit organization that works to provide a free, warm coat to any person in need. I started volunteering for them back in 2009 as I was looking to give back and also sharpen my Salesforce skills. I got One Warm Coat migrated from Excel to Salesforce!
A couple of years ago, I joined their board of directors and I have really enjoyed providing technology consulting and strategic guidance to the OWC team. I absolutely love how the team at OWC is remote (like many of us here at Silverline), and is able to make such a huge impact across the entire country simply by connecting coat donors with people and charities in need of coats.
Janel Bromberek, CalendarAnything Account Executive
I rescue and foster Corgis! After rescuing a puppy mill mom (Molly Brown #theunsinkablemollybrown), it changed my entire life. Seeing a pup go from so afraid, timid, and just plain scared of people to being a loving pup that can’t get enough pets and attention… it was one of the most fulfilling things I’ve ever done.
After that I was hooked. I ended up being a foster fail to Molly and adopting her and have since fostered another corgi pup from an abandonment situation. She is now living her best life in her forever home!
If I am not keeping foster pups while their parents are away, I am organizing some sort of fundraiser for the SouthEast Corgi Rescue. Corgis have gotten very popular over the years and the more popular a dog — the more puppy mills there are. So organizations like the South East Corgi Rescue are invaluable to saving those pups.
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