The Latest
Standing outside a warehouse on a brisk December afternoon wasn’t meant to be the highlight of my day volunteering at A Wider Circle. My jacket wasn’t quite warm enough and my gloves were stashed in my car, not on my hands. Finally, a car whipped into the parking lot and out jumps a woman in her late twenties, grinning ear to ear, her hands clutching brown paper bags full of sandwiches that we had ordered for our staff lunch. Turns out that she wasn’t smiling wildly because she just LOVES delivering food—she was smiling because she was thrilled to be delivering food to the very place that had helped her family get back on their feet in a time of need. It was one of those rare full circle moments that really drives home why we do what we do.
Giving back is one of The Lukens Company (TLC)’s core values, and we make it a priority to do so regularly. Throughout the year, TLC employees frequently take it upon themselves, often with help from our Employee Engagement Committee, to organize charitable drives and volunteer out in the community. For this year alone, we’ve participated in over a dozen charitable acts that include preparing and serving meals to the homeless at Ascencia in LA, sending greeting cards and supplies to troops overseas, and hosting a bake sale to raise donations for Mended Little Hearts.
In addition to these small but mighty acts of service, TLC annually participates in a company-wide volunteer day. This year, we were proud to lend a hand to A Wider Circle, a nonprofit committed to eradicating poverty by providing basic need items to individuals and families transitioning out of homelessness, fleeing domestic abuse, or otherwise living without essentials. Other important programs include Workforce Development, Neighborhood Partnerships, and Partnership to Independence. Our staff was delighted to support A Wider Circle and got the opportunity to organize donations, help clients make selections, and wrap holiday gifts.
Between year-end campaigns, holiday festivities, and planning for the next year, it can be easy to lose sight of what’s important. Slowing down, even for just a few hours, to volunteer our time and resources to an organization devoted to helping those less fortunate truly brings our purpose and mission into focus: supporting and serving organizations who make the world a better place.