Corporate Volunteer Project Event

Spring 2019 Corporate Volunteer Project Event

The Chevron Center for Corporate Social Responsibility at Waynesburg University hosted a large-scale, multiple-site volunteer project event Thursday, April 11, in celebration of National Volunteer Week. Projects were held throughout Greene and Washington counties in southwestern Pennsylvania. The event was strategically crafted to meet some of the initial needs of the partner agencies and their communities as identified by data collected through a micro course on food insecurity, recently sponsored by Carnegie Mellon University and Waynesburg University.

Project Particpation and Impact

Projects at the food banks ranged from sorting and packing pantry orders to prepping the garden beds for planting season. At the Greater Washington County Food Bank, volunteers assisted with the construction of a new greenhouse and preparatory work for a new hydroponics area.

At the schools, volunteers worked alongside students in the construction community pantry boxes. Similar to the concept of a Free Little Library, completed pantry boxes will be strategically placed throughout the McGuffey and West Greene school district communities to help those in need have 24/7 access to food, hygiene items and cleaning products.

Aside from the volunteer projects, eight offices held pantry drives, collecting items such as boxed foods, condiments, breakfast foods, snacks, beverages, canned foods, hygiene products and cleaning products. The donated items were split among the four partner agencies.

Offices that participated included Bowles Bowles Rice LLP, First Federal of Greene County, Mackin Engineering, Stanley Black & Decker, Steptoe & Johnson PLLC, TechnipFMC, Tenaris and Waynesburg University.

Three companies – Bowles Rice LLP, Community Bank and Mackin Engineering – contributed $500 each, which helped the CSR Center present a $500 surprise donation to each partner organization.

Other organizations that provided financial assistance, discounted materials or donated equipment were 84 Lumber, Chevron, EQT Corporation, Stanley Black & Decker and the Center for Service Leadership at Waynesburg University.