The Neighbor To Have
Commitment to Community |
In 2009, through the Sharing Team El Paso (STEP) program, our employees volunteered more than 14,800 hours in communities across our system. Through active participation in a variety of organizations and programs, El Paso volunteers have a real and immediate impact on our neighbors and in our neighborhoods. Our STEP Web site, which is available on El Paso Today, makes it easy for employees to
volunteer by providing a central location where they can learn about and sign up for upcoming volunteer events. Volunteers can also
record their hours, as well as the hours of family and friends, who can register for certain events.
In supporting fundamental needs, El Paso’s employee volunteers assist organizations such as the American Red Cross, Habitat for Humanity, Association for the Advancement of Mexican Americans, Child Advocates, and Target Hunger. In our focus area of education, El Paso volunteers help improve the academic achievement of youth by supporting programs that teach essential skills needed to succeed in the workplace. For example, we continued our support for KIPP in 2009. KIPP’s mission is to help disadvantaged students develop and strengthen academic skills and character to achieve success in college and in life. We supported Junior Achievement, an organization that provides hands-on,
age-appropriate programs designed to educate elementary and secondary school students about work readiness and entrepreneurship, as well as develop financial literacy.
We were also one of the initial corporate sponsors of
Genesys Works, a non-profit organization that trains and employs high school students to perform technical services for major corporations. We continue to support the organization by hiring economically
disadvantaged high school students who have completed the Genesys Works training program. Initially, these students worked in our Audit and Information Technology departments, but we have since expanded our support for the program to include aspiring engineers, a field where there is tremendous demand for young talent. Two of our minority officers serve on the board
of Genesys and we’ve been named an Outstanding Sponsor as a result of our efforts.
In support of our focus on environmental stewardship, El Paso volunteers supported such organizations as the Ruffner Mountain Nature Coalition and Trails and Open Space Coalition. In addition to helping fund improvements at these locations—including a new visitor center at Ruffner Mountain—Team El Paso volunteers work on numerous projects that include clearing hiking trails, removing debris from wetland areas, and creating teaching areas along hiking trails.
Finally, to align El Paso’s charitable support with the interests and passions of our employees, we created ep36, our employee volunteer grant program. Implemented in January 2009 using the STEP volunteer Web site, the program helps team members track their personal volunteer hours at organizations they support. After an employee records 36 volunteer hours for an organization, the employee can request a $500 grant from El Paso to the organization in his or her name. In 2009, 13 ep36 grants were awarded, totaling $6,500.
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