Since my childhood, volunteering and giving back to the community have been very important activities to me. I grew up in a culture of giving — from handing out backpacks with my church to volunteering with nonprofit organizations that my father started, which primarily focused on empowering and mentoring youth in my hometown of Chester, Pennsylvania.
When I started my freshman year at Widener University last fall, I knew I wanted to stay committed to helping communities for the better. I signed up for volunteer opportunities with clubs on campus and did some others on my own as well. Needless to say, I was excited when I began my summer internship at IBX and learned I could carry my love for volunteering into the corporate world.
Jump Right In: Giving Back with IBX
My summer internship with IBX started on June 4, and two days later I was out of the building for a company-wide day of service with my fellow college interns. My group went to volunteer at the Share Food Program, and after reading more about them, I was excited to help their goal of expanding access to affordable food!
The summer interns were broken up into several groups and assigned tasks, such as packing wholesome food boxes, sorting food donations for distribution to local cupboards, and preparing seed beds for spring, summer, and fall vegetable plantings. I was in a group of four, and we had the responsibility of putting used cardboard boxes into the compression machine. Our group also had help from one of our executive sponsors, Senior Vice President & Chief Human Resources Officer Jeanie Heffernan. In the two hours we were there, the five of us cleared more than 12 piles of boxes that were bundled and recycled after being compressed!
Helping Others Helps Us
We were there with the purpose of helping the Share Food Program fulfill their mission, and it was so rewarding to be able to contribute to the cause. But on top of that, my fellow summer interns and I also had so much FUN doing it together. Seeing how we could all work together to help our neighboring communities made the volunteering event way more fun and enjoyable. And from it I have gained a new group of friends, bonded by our day of service.
I had a wonderful time volunteering during my first week of my summer internship at IBX, and I look forward to having more chances to get involved while I’m here.
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