At Disney Consumer Products (DCP), we celebrated the 30th Anniversary of Disney VoluntEARS by planning events across the country, ensuring that every DCP employee had an opportunity to participate.
First, more than 200 Disney Stores accepted a challenge to each log at least 30 hours of volunteerism in May. While we’re waiting for the detailed reports, we estimate 6,500 hours donated this month by our passionate Disney Store team!
Back at our main offices, we kicked off the month by decorating and filling more than 600 snack bags to benefit the Kids Café program through the Los Angeles Food Bank. This program serves approximately 1,900 kids in 27 after school sites.
During the second week of May, in California and New York, we worked on projects supporting Operation Gratitude, which sends packages and letters to U.S. military personnel. Knowing we could send a little Disney magic to these heroes was very rewarding.
Next, we worked on two community garden projects with LA Neighborhood Land Trust and Little Green Fingers, which are expected to provide more than 6,000 pounds of fruits and vegetables each year for low-income families. The gardens are a place to gather, grow and come together as a community, and we were proud to be part of it!
Later in the month, VoluntEARS spent two days giving joy and companionship to animals at Pet Orphans, one of the oldest shelters in Southern California. Animals that are socialized are more likely to find a forever home with a loving family.
Finally, we just wrapped up the celebration with an event with local Pasadena Boys & Girls Clubs. More than 100 VoluntEARS joined Boys & Girls Club kids who expressed their creative moxie by decorating our campus with colorful characters in chalk. The kids also learned how to draw, made their own tote bags, created stories and more.
All of us are proud to have made an impact not only on the lives of people in our community but by enriching our own lives through service to others!