On 3.14.15 We Celebrated Pi day! The Westminster Office Volunteer Committee purchased a variety of pies to sell by the slice. All proceeds raised by selling delicious pie slices went to a local science and math after school program to provide a scholarship for one local Westminster child to have his or her tuition paid to participate. Not only did we honor the significance of the date matching up perfectly with the first 5 digits of the mathematical number, but we shared a tasty treat with our coworkers while doing a good deed helping a local child explore science and math.

The Westminster Office Volunteer Committee sponsored a pet photo contest and collected supplies. All employees voted on their favorite pet photo, and the winner received a gift certificate to Pet Smart. All funds and items collected were donated to Adams County Animal Shelter.

The Westminster Office Volunteer Committee partnered with the Westminster Office Party Crew Committee this year for our December event. We put together six different gift baskets and sold raffle tickets for $2.00 each for the chance to win a basket. Employees and spouses purchased tickets and then dropped them into the box that correlated with the basket they wanted to take a chance on winning. Then during the annual Christmas party that was held at the Westminster office, we drew the winners of each basket. The baskets were so great and there was a variety of themes. The funds that were raised during this event went to our Charity of the year, The Gathering Place.

November is the month that we always think about the less fortunate soles in our community. So this year we wanted to do something to help the Denver Rescue Mission provide Thanksgiving Dinner to the homeless in our community. We sold pictures of Thanksgiving foods to decorate our table in the lunchroom. Each picture was $2.00 which would provide one hot meal at Thanksgiving for the homeless. We raised $80.00 which was donated to the Denver Rescue Mission and will provide 40 hot Thanksgiving dinners. Thank you to all of our generous employees for participating in this event.

This is the month we all start thinking about the cold weather that is coming soon. The Westminster Office Volunteer Committee held a coat drive this month. We asked employees to bring in old coats that they no longer needed or wanted and place them in the large barrel in the lunchroom. We had a huge barrel of coats and in early November we took them to the Coats for Colorado donation site. We know these coats will help keep many people warm this winter and we are thankful to Channel 4 and Dependable Cleaners for making this event happen every year. We are happy to do our part.

The Westminster Office Volunteer Committee sponsored a can drive to begin collecting cans for the Can Can event that will come up in September, sponsored by HindmanSanchez. We asked our employees to bring in cans of food that would help build our structure and then be donated to Food Bank of the Rockies. We held a PanCan one morning and provided pancakes and bacon for either a donation of 5 cans of food or $5.00. We also asked many of our contractors to contribute cans of food which helped us reach our goal so we could build a giant Etch-a-Sketch. Then on Sept. 12, 2014, we went to the HindmanSanchez corporate office and built our Etch-a-Sketch in the parking lot of their building. It was a challenge as the parking lot is not level. But we managed to get it together and had a lot of fun. We didn’t win any prizes this year, but it was all for a good cause as the overall event collected over 10,000 can of food for the Food Bank of the Rockies.

Christmas in July!!! The Westminster Office Volunteer Committee asked our employees to think about Christmas early this year. We asked employees to shop for toys in July to ease the pain of shopping in December and to purchase toys for Toys for Tots, which is a toy drive organized by the US Marines. Toys for Tots distributes toys to needy children in December so more kids can enjoy the spirit of Christmas. We collected dozens of toys and held them until November, then we would deliver them to a donation site so they can be given away to those great kids. Who doesn’t like the look on a child’s face when they open a toy at Christmas. MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!!

This month the Westminster Office Volunteer Committee partnered with Project Angel Heart and got creative. Our conference room became the “Creative Room” for a couple of days. Employees were encourage to make birthday greeting cards for the organization Project Angel Heart. This group distributes meals to individuals with terminal illnesses who cannot get out on their own. They include a birthday card with each meal given to an individual with a birthday that week or month. This is not the first time we have done this project and each time, our creative employees give their time to create the nicest greeting cards for this organization. We made over 75 birthday cards, which is amazing and so much fun. Thanks to all of our employees who participated and/or donated old greeting cards to use for this project.

The Westminster Office Volunteer Committee held a Hot Dog Bar to kick off the baseball season and to wish our Rockies the best of luck in 2014. The lunch included yummy steamed hot dogs and buns with all of the trimmings for only $5.00! We all dressed in our favorite Rockies jerseys and were ready for the start of the season. The Hot Dog Bar raised funds for the Gathering Place, which is our charity for the year.