Impact Networking Branches Spread Holiday Cheer
Impact Networking employees were very active participants in the season of giving through charitable events this holiday season. Impact takes great pride in its partnerships with charitable institutions throughout the Midwest, and has a culture that emphasizes the importance of charitable giving.
Two events stood out this holiday season that made a big impact in the lives of those who are most in need.
In Chicago, Impact carried on its longstanding tradition with the Letters to Santa program. Since partnering exclusively with Pickard Elementary School in 2009, hundreds of gifts have been donated by Impact to this Pilsen school each year. Pickard is a school in an economically disadvantaged area of Chicago where children often request items that most of us would consider basic needs. Employees donate to the program throughout the year, and the children’s requested gifts are hand-picked, purchased, and wrapped by Heidi Cucco, the Charitable Organizations Coordinator and wife of CEO Frank Cucco. Her efforts are a months’ long labor of love that make the entire event possible. The gifts are then delivered to Pickard through a coordinated effort that involves several Impact employees and Pickard staff. Executive Account Manager and Partner Nate Robinson has been the Santa-in-residence at Impact for several years, while his elves have the heartwarming privilege of seeing the students’ faces light up as the receive their gifts. These gifts are often the highlight of the holiday season for the Pickard students. In addition to the presents, Impact hosts a pizza party for the entire school. Students who once received the gifts as part of Letters to Santa often approach Impact employees years later to say “thank you,” or express gratitude that their younger siblings are now the recipients of these gifts.
Our Indianapolis office partnered with Latino Community Development (LCD) to provide toys, household supplies, and a turkey to 500 households in the greater Indianapolis area. LCD Indiana offers a range of vital services to the Latino community, including nutrition and health initiatives, financial counseling and assistance, and other programs designed to help empower the Latino community and provide tools and resources for perpetual growth within that community. Impact participated in the LCD Santa Comes to Town program to help this admirable organization further its goals. General Manager and Partner Chris Zvirbulis spoke highly of those who donated their money and time to make this huge undertaking possible. It was a well-coordinated labor of love that deeply affected those who participated. Zvirbulis himself dressed as Santa, and all branch members helped prepare and distribute the gifts.
These and other charitable efforts by Impact unite employees in a way that helps them reach outside the workplace and into their respective communities to help those that need it most. These special events are highly anticipated by all throughout the year, and are a meaningful part of the Impact experience that are valued by everyone at the company.