10/24/2014

ATC employees volunteer during United Way Days of Caring


During American Transmission Co.’s United Way Days of Caring this year, more than 100 employees volunteered for projects at various agencies. In the span of a few short days, employees helped United Way organizations accomplish a great deal, while at the same time learning how much help is needed in the community each day.


Day of Caring volunteers were busy at Feeding America

ATC’s Day of Caring volunteers from the Pewaukee office were very busy sorting and labeling food for the hungry at Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin in Milwaukee.
Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin is a food bank that distributes more than 22 million pounds of food a year to 1,000 pantries, meal programs and other nonprofit agencies that serve 330,000 people in eastern Wisconsin. The Milwaukee distribution center provides food to nearly 800 nonprofit programs in nine counties. Representatives at the center shared that they could have a group like ATC’s help out every day.
 
Employees help Interfaith clean up gardens before winter
You would have thought that an army went in to clean up the gardens at Interfaith’s Washington Park Senior Center in Milwaukee, Wis. However, it was a powerful group of 10 ATC employees who pulled weeds, trimmed bushes, transplanted and cut down perennials to make the gardens look beautiful.
Since 1975, Interfaith has established many programs focused on quality services, social opportunities and valuable resources to enhance the welfare of older adults and family caregivers who support them. The community center offers a warm place to gather for older adults to enjoy the company of friends, take exercise classes, use computers and enjoy many other group activities along with the wonderful gardens ATC’s volunteers helped spruce up.
 
Volunteers at LifeStriders help with stables and horse riding lessons

It was rainy, but LifeStriders Therapeutic Riding Center, located on a farm in Waukesha County, Wis., had plenty of indoor work for our volunteers to do. ATC employees helped with cleanup in the horse stables, organized equipment, created teaching tools for use during riding lessons and later assisted LifeStriders staff and other volunteers with riding lessons.
LifeStriders provides fun and interactive sessions to help children and adults with special needs experience the physical and mental benefits achieved through working with horses. They currently have 104 students enrolled in the program, which requires more than 300 volunteer hours each week, so the help of all volunteers is greatly appreciated.


Area was full of leaves at Bay Beach Wildlife Sanctuary

ATC’s employees did a lot of raking during a fall clean up at Bay Beach Wildlife Sanctuary in Green Bay, Wis. Everyone enjoyed the opportunity to give back to the community while they worked in the fresh air.

The Bay Beach Wildlife Sanctuary is a beautiful 700 acre urban wildlife refuge featuring live animal exhibits, educational displays, miles of hiking/skiing trails and various wildlife viewing opportunities. It is home to the second largest wildlife rehabilitation program in Wisconsin, caring for more than 4,500 orphaned and injured animals annually.
 
Employees help build a brighter future for a Waukesha family 
Two groups of employees helped with siding, building a porch and constructing shelving for a Habitat for Humanity home in Waukesha, Wis.
Through volunteer labor and tax-deductible donations of money, land and materials, Habitat for Humanity of Waukesha County builds or rehabilitates houses in partnership with families who need an affordable home.

Group works through icy conditions to sort food
Working in a cold room, ATC volunteers from Madison and Cottage Grove, Wis., sorted 28,500 pounds of frozen food at the Second Harvest Foodbank of Southern Wisconsin.
In one year, Second Harvest and its partners provide more than 12 million meals to those facing hunger.


 Many cats will have a cozy place to sleep thanks to ATC volunteers
 
Volunteers at the Dane County Humane Society had fun while they made more than 45 cat beds. The group received a tour of the facility and donated needed supplies to the organization.
 
DCHS is an open admission shelter that accepts animals that need assistance no matter their age, health status or temperament. DCHS places all healthy or treatable cats and dogs in new homes.
 
ATC employees had a great time during the Days of Caring for the United Way and truly enjoyed giving back to the communities where they live and work.

Watch a video to learn why ATC employees volunteered for the United Way.