This week, in honor of National Volunteer Month and to celebrate Earth Day on April 22, Sovrn took some time out from our usual busy schedules to volunteer together at Growing Gardens, a sustainable food education and donation nonprofit in Boulder, Colorado.
On a bright and sunny day, Sovrn employees had a chance to get their hands into the dirt, connect with one another outside of the office, and give back to the community. One team was busy transplanting eggplant and basil seedlings in the greenhouse while the other was outside on the farm planting broccoli and cauliflower plants into neat rows.
And while most of the plants will be sold through Growing Gardens plant sales or through the farm’s Community Supported Agriculture program, more than 20,000 plant starts will be donated to low-income gardeners to grow their own food. All in all, Growing Gardens donated plant starts, seed packets, or fresh produce to over 15,000 people in 2021 – meaning the organization needs a lot of hands each spring to help.
Volunteering at local organizations is just one way Sovrn gives back to the communities in which we have a presence – both our employees and the company itself via matching employee donations. In Boulder, we’ve donated to the Boulder Humane Society and Emergency Family Assistance Association, and, most recently, to the Community Foundation Boulder County to help those who suffered tragic losses in December due to the Marshall Fire. And, we’ve helped the Veterans Community Project bring tiny homes to the neighboring town of Longmont.
Sovrn also supports individual volunteering by providing paid time off for employees to give back to their local community, whether that’s where one of our offices are located (Boulder, Colorado; New York City; San Diego, California; and London) or, for our remote employees, wherever they reside.
For employees, volunteer team building events like the one at Growing Gardens this week is a way to give back, get out of the office, and to get to know people in a different way than inside an office (or via Zoom).
“It opens up a new opportunity to talk to people and collaborate across departments in a non-work setting,” said Amber Blose, employee experience lead at Sovrn who organized the outing. “A team building event like this is such a great way to build connections with others you might not interact with every day and learn something new about them – and your community.”
Interested in joining Sovrn? Visit our Careers page to explore our open positions.
