On Friday, September 11, 2015, Michelman employees around the world put their corporate work down and embraced a day of giving back to their communities. For hundreds of Michelman employees at locations in the United States, Belgium, Germany, Luxembourg, Shanghai, Singapore, India and Japan, this was the 4th annual “Global Day of Service.”

According to Steve Shifman, President and CEO at Michelman, “One of our core values at Michelman is giving. To put that value into practice, and give back to the communities that have helped make our growth and success possible, we shut down worldwide operations for a fourth year in a row, on September 11. Our associates travelled into local communities around the world where they volunteered, worked and contributed. As we fanned out across the USA, Europe and Asia, I could not have been more proud of the genuine giving spirit of the team here at Michelman.”

In the United States, volunteer associates spent the day at locations including Giving Fields, a community farm that provides fresh produce for food pantries, soup kitchens and other agencies that provide emergency food. Volunteers helped clear fields, harvest crops and prepare fields for the next growing season. Other Michelman groups travelled to Tender Mercies, a housing environment for homeless adults with mental illnesses, where they facilitated games, prepared care packages and led exercise classes; and at Easter Seals, an organization that helps individuals with disabilities and special needs, as well as their families, live better lives. Volunteers at Easter Seals helped with facility maintenance and led groups in bingo games. At People Working Cooperatively, an organization that improves the quality of living for low-income, elderly and disabled homeowners by providing critical home repairs, energy conservation and weatherization, mobility modifications and maintenance services, volunteers performed a variety of home repair and maintenance tasks. At a local YMCA, Michelman volunteers assisted in classrooms and helped clean and repair grounds around the facility.

In China, Michelman associates, along with a team from the company’s long-time sales and service agent Kelly Chemical, donated or collected second hand, used and unused items, and held a public welfare fair to raise funds for the poor and under privileged in the Hua Qiang area of Shanghai.

In Singapore, Michelman volunteers took groups of low income school children on three different field trips. They visited the Singapore Science Centre, the Singapore Discovery Center, and the Sungel Buloh Wetland Reserve. A separate group of associates helped conduct health screening and distribute meals to low income elderly residents.

In India, Michelman associates spent time at an old age home as well as a girls and boys orphanage, where they visited with and befriended residents, and provided hospitality including food and personal care items.

In Japan, volunteers helped clean and beautify Heijima Park to support the local community in Ginan-sho, a town located in Hashima District, Gifu Prefecture, Central Japan.

In Europe, Michelman employees spread out across nine different locations including La Petite Plante, a residential service for adults with multiple disabilities and at Natagora – Marais de la Cussignière à Musson, a nature reserve where they helped with outdoor maintenance and landscaping duties. At Fondation Kraizbierg, a center for individuals with disabilities, and at Maison de la Sainte Famille, a facility for dementia and Alzheimer patients, volunteers also helped with maintenance landscaping jobs. At schools including Ecole Libre de Lamorteau, Ecole Primaire de Tintigny and Ecoloe Communale d’Attert, volunteers took on tasks including painting, landscaping and light building projects. Michelman volunteers at La Maison du Pain, a reception center for women and children helped with indoor and outdoor maintenance of horse stables and dining facilities.

Summarizing the day’s events, Shifman reflected, “While we set aside one day a year for these important tasks, I’m incredibly proud of the giving back I see Michelman associates engaged in on a year round basis. It is the spirit of these incredible individuals that creates the foundation for our reputation and continued success around the globe.”

By Michelman