Employees from Comcast, BBVA Compass and Rosemont Copper’s Hudbay Project spent the day at St. Luke’s Home on October 19 volunteering their services on a range of projects as part of the United Way’s Days of Care. Their work involved painting four rooms, including the parlor,med rooms and alcove, washing windows around the entire perimeter, and scraping rust off the wrought iron outside the chapel.
Sandi Acuna, team leader for BBVA Compass, has been with her company for 17 years and has volunteered every year for Days of Care. She is the executive assistant to BBVA’s CEO and also has a special connection with St. Luke’s Home. Sandi’s husband’s grandfather was treated at St. Luke’s many years ago when it was a tuberculosis hospital. Sandi’s team of eight volunteers painted three rooms. Sandi said the experience is great for her colleagues. “It has been a lot of good team building,” she said, “lots of laughing, working together and getting to know people in the St. Luke’s community.”
Eight employees were part of the Hudbay Project team, according to Team Leader Vicki Andazola, Human Resources Superintendent at Hudbay. She noted that this is the first year that Hudbay has participated in Days of Care but that it had been a great experience. “I am sure we will have more volunteers next year because it’s been a great and more will want to come when they hear how much fun we had.” Her team washed every window in the light-filled St. Luke’s community. “It was great for team-building,” she said, “and we all loved hearing the stories of the community members.”
Michelle Johnson, in customer service at Comcast, was the only representative from her company this year. She noted that Comcast does its own company-wide volunteer event but she was unable to participate. So she was eager to part of Days of Care. A full-time Comcast employee and a full-time student at Pima Community College in the paralegal program, Johnson pointed out, “Real giving includes sacrifice, and I have so little extra time that being here today is a sacrifice I am happy to do!” She was scraping rust from the wrought iron near the chapel, sweating, listening to music through tiny ear buds, glad to be a part of making St. Luke’s more beautiful.