Hundreds of Ford employees pitch in to help
COLOGNE, Germany — Ford volunteers are skilled, dedicated, caring and in Europe last week, vibrant. More than 300 Ford employees in Germany, Hungary, Romania, Spain and the United Kingdom participated in Vibrant Volunteer Week, contributing over 3,000 hours to making people’s lives better. Vibrant Volunteer Week was introduced in 2017 to give Ford employees more opportunities to team up with their colleagues and serve people in their communities.
• Refugee children and their families in Germany are learning to speak the language and understand the culture with help from Ford volunteers.
• In Hungary, Ford employees coached sports, taught nature lessons and helped homeless, disabled and orphaned children experience hiking, fishing and other outdoor camp activities.
• Ford employees in Romania installed signaling devices, signage and surface markings for a new heliport at Emergency Hospital Craiova, the only facility like it in a five county region.
• Ford volunteers in Spain provided breakfast for the hungry at San Anton’s church, spending the week serving hundreds of meals to their neighbors in need.
• Residents at The Marillac, a care center in the United Kingdom for adults with disabilities, will enjoy more time outdoors after Ford volunteers helped create a sheltered garden for them.
“Each volunteer on every project helped strengthen their community and make a real difference for the people who live there,” said Debbie Chennells, Ford Fund manager, Ford of Europe. “Ford Fund also provides grants to the nonprofits to buy tools and supplies, saving them money that can be used to serve more people.”
The Ford Volunteer Corps is on the job throughout the year and is currently enlisting employees around the world for projects during Ford Global Caring Month in September. Thousands of Ford employees are already signing up to be part of the largest concentration of Ford volunteers in the community each year.
“Ford employees make enthusiastic volunteers and offer skills, such as engineering, finance and legal expertise that can help people and nonprofits fill the gaps in services they provide,” said Todd Nissen, director, Ford Volunteer Corps. “There’s nothing more rewarding and energizing than spending time helping people in the community.”
The Ford Volunteer Corps was launched in 2005 and has contributed nearly 1.8 million hours of community service in 50 countries, representing more than $43 million of in-kind community investments.
