{"id":15906,"date":"2017-10-16T11:10:40","date_gmt":"2017-10-16T15:10:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/news.samsung.com\/us\/?p=15906"},"modified":"2019-06-18T22:47:46","modified_gmt":"2019-06-19T02:47:46","slug":"samsung-employees-celebrate-commitment-community-impact-day-service","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.samsung.com\/us\/2017-2h-samsung-day-of-service-samsunggives-recap\/","title":{"rendered":"Samsung Employees Celebrate Commitment to Community Impact through Day of Service"},"content":{"rendered":"

Thirty-thousand meals<\/span> packed and shipped for the fight against global hunger; hundreds of bags filled with garbage that was contaminating our rivers; garden beds, picnic tables and benches built for greener urban environments and mentoring hundreds of young adults to inspire future success. These are just a few examples of community impact Day of Service <\/a>activities had on Friday, October 13th<\/sup>, fueled by the 4,000 Samsung Electronics America employees who pitched in across the U.S.<\/p>\n

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\u201cThis was actually my third year participating in Day of Service. This will be my first time working with Rise Against Hunger, so I\u2019m excited about the opportunity to help,\u201d said Shirlie Viera, Assistant Manager, Supply Chain. \u201cThis is a great cause and it\u2019s great that Samsung\u2019s taking time away from the so-called \u2018daily grind\u2019 to participate in something to help the community \u2013 not just here in the states, but across the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

Viera worked together with 50 of her colleagues in Ridgefield Park, NJ, on a meal-kit assembly line to pack 10,000 boxes with rice, soy, dehydrated vegetables and micronutrients for Rise Against Hunger\u2019s<\/strong> mission to end global hunger by the year 2030. Meanwhile, 130 more of her colleagues in Bridgewater, NJ and Mountain View, CA were also packing meal kits, to ship roughly 30,000 to children in Haiti, the Dominican Republic and Africa.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is part of the Samsung culture to give back and to recognize that it\u2019s important enough to take a day off from work and what we usually are doing to help those less fortunate,\u201d said Steve Reiss, community engagement manager for Rise Against Hunger in the Kearny, NJ office. As a Samsung Gives<\/strong> partner organization that has participated in Day of Service for the last 3 years, Reiss said the opportunity to educate Samsung employees about the group\u2019s mission has a real impact.<\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of times the employees who participate during Day of Service will go back to their hometown and bring a meal packing event there. So, it grows organically through us and is a wonderful opportunity that Samsung gives us,\u201d explained Reiss.<\/p>\n

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Samsung Electronics America employees work with Rise Against Hunger during Day of Service to pack 10,000 meal kits for children in need.<\/p><\/div>\n

Talking Tech in Texas and the Bronx<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n

Meeting with young adults to mentor and inspire their future success always plays a prominent role in Day of Service. Tech Titans <\/u><\/strong>(formerly known as the Metroplex Technology Business Council) is the largest technology trade association in Texas, representing a quarter million employees through its 300 member companies. This October, Samsung partnered with the group to disperse 45 employees to 3 local high schools in the Richardson, TX area where they engaged in \u201cspeed mentoring\u201d sessions with teens, but Justin Denison<\/a>, Sr. Vice President, Mobile Product Strategy and Marketing for Samsung Electronics America said that through the experience he was learning from the students too.<\/p>\n

Denison added that giving back to the community is not only important from a social responsibility perspective, it\u2019s an integral part of the business.<\/p>\n

\u201cDay of Service is all part of this notion of co-prosperity that Samsung pursues as part of our corporate values. We\u2019re drawing on the community to staff our company and to bring in new ideas and new talent and so it\u2019s very important to access all the talent in the local community and to really learn and then give back along the way.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Samsung Electronics America employees participate in speed mentoring sessions focused on Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) subjects with teens from Tech Titans in Richardson, TX.<\/p><\/div>\n

For Lori Tretner, Senior Marketing Manager with Samsung Electronics America, the day spent mentoring the students was rewarding.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s always fun to get out of what you do every day to do something different and to touch the lives of these children,\u201d adding, \u201cIt means a lot to work for a company that\u2019s focused on giving back because that\u2019s part of my personal values as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hundreds of miles away, at Madison Square Boys & Girls Club in the Bronx, 25 Samsung employees were helping 6 to 9-year-olds with homework, technology and crafts but because it was a Friday, managed to squeeze in time for fun and games with the kids also. For one employee the experience hit close to home.<\/p>\n

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Samsung Electronics America employees assist Madison Square Boys & Girls Club members with homework and participate in club game activities during Day of Service.<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201cDay of Service is probably one of my favorite activities at Samsung,\u201d said Anthony Lopez, senior process innovation analyst at Samsung Electronics America. \u201cBeing able to be in the Bronx where I was born and raised, giving back to the community that I still actually live in is extremely rewarding.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lopez reflected on how growing up in a difficult neighborhood like the Bronx, he wouldn\u2019t be where he is today in life without similar mentoring opportunities like Day of Service is providing now to young people in partnership with Boys & Girls Clubs of America<\/strong><\/a>. \u201cIt\u2019s extremely important that I give back in the same exact way that I receive,\u201d explained Lopez.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt Samsung, everything\u2019s done with passion. That\u2019s the greatest thing about working for this company whether you\u2019re in the office getting challenged by an assignment or you\u2019re picking up a rake or a shovel, it\u2019s amazing here today when you just see everybody going for it \u2013 and they\u2019re giving it their all \u2013 that\u2019s what Day of Service is about and that\u2019s what Samsung\u2019s all about.\u201d<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

-Tony Cicio, Vice President of the People Team<\/em><\/span><\/h5>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Michelle Froah, Vice President of Marketing Excellence, Strategy and Integration for Samsung Electronics America, was also in the Bronx because of her passion for empowering kids through science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education, a focus area Samsung and the Boys & Girls Clubs of America have partnered on for many years.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s really important for our youth to have STEM skills, because technology and being able to apply technology to your everyday life is going to be critical in the future,\u201d said Froah. She added not only is Day of Service an investment in communities through employee service but it\u2019s also an investment in Samsung employees through giving them that time off to dedicate to areas they\u2019re passionate about within their communities.<\/p>\n

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Samsung Electronics America employees work with Hackensack Riverkeeper to clean up the area around Samsung NAHQ and then board canoes to clean up Overpeck Creek.<\/p><\/div>\n

Cleaning and Greening for a Good Cause<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n

Decisions around activities chosen for Day of Service are driven by Samsung\u2019s overall corporate citizenship focus on supporting education, health and sustainability, so it\u2019s no surprise that many employees were getting their hands dirty on Day of Service and more than happy to do it.<\/p>\n

With Hackensack Riverkeeper, it wasn\u2019t a pretty picture to see the trash that accumulates in the Overpeck River, behind Samsung\u2019s Ridgefield Park offices. So, employees boarded canoes to collect the debris.<\/p>\n

Lauren Restuccia, the program\u2019s master planner, along with the Corporate Citizenship<\/strong> team, refrains from participating in the day\u2019s activities to ensure the months of planning leading up to it pay off for employees and partner charities, but said the hard work in planning is rewarded by being able to witness the results.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe positive feedback coming from our charity partners, energy from employees and the team building that comes out of Day of Service activities always gives everyone at Samsung a sense of pride about how they\u2019ve been able to make positive contributions to local communities alongside their colleagues,\u201d said Restuccia.<\/p>\n

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Samsung Electronics America employees beautify and maintain Therapeutic Healing Garden for Children\u2019s Aid & Family Services in Ridgewood, NJ.<\/p><\/div>\n

In New Jersey, 30 employees worked as a team to beautify and maintain the tranquility of Children\u2019s Aid and Family Services\u2019 (CAFS) Therapeutic Healing Garden.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen we got here this morning there was a lot of weeds, there was a lot of leaves, so there was a ton of yardwork for us to do, but we were happy to do it and everyone was energized because of the cause and they were inspired to really come out here and pitch in,\u201d said Michael Bilow, Channel Marketing Manager in Samsung\u2019s Mobile B2B business unit.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s extremely important that I give back in the same exact way that I receive.\u201d <\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

-Anthony Lopez, senior process innovation analyst<\/em><\/span><\/h5>\n<\/blockquote>\n

The group was so energized and passionate about how the garden serves to support CAFS\u2019s efforts in caring for vulnerable children, young adults, frail elderly and their families that they finished the pruning and greening ahead of schedule, according to Tony Cicio, Vice President of the People Team.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt Samsung, everything\u2019s done with passion. That\u2019s the greatest thing about working for this company whether you\u2019re in the office getting challenged by an assignment or you\u2019re picking up a rake or a shovel, it\u2019s amazing here today when you just see everybody going for it \u2013 and they\u2019re giving it their all \u2013 that\u2019s what Day of Service is about and that\u2019s what Samsung\u2019s all about.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Check out more photos from this year’s Day of Service:<\/p>\n