Commercial Integrator February 2021 - 38

CONNECTED TO THE COMMUNITY
Community
Connected to the
Diversified Expects Work with Loaves
and Fishes Family Kitchen to Multiply
After serving Thanksgiving dinner to 150 homeless and struggling people as partner of San Jose
Sharks, Diversified employees want to do more to help. by D. Craig MacCormack
MOST PEOPLE WOULD LIKELY NOT
believe that an area that's so chock-full of
innovative thinkers and billion-dollar ideas
is also one of the parts of the U.S. with the
highest population of homeless people,
but such is life in San Jose, Calif.
Diversified senior VP of global marketing
Anthony Cuellar has been acutely aware of
the issue for a while now and was part of
a team of about 20 Diversified employees
who helped the San Jose Sharks serve
Thanksgiving meals to about 150 homeless
people in the area.
" In Silicon Valley, with the sheer wealth
that's been generated there, why would
anybody be homeless? There's so much
opportunity, " says Cuellar.
" When you see that on a regular basis, if
you're a compassionate person, you have
to ask yourself how you can make a difference.
That was big motivation for us to get
involved, " he says.
Through the Loaves and Fishes Neighborhood
Kitchen, Diversified employees joined
Sharks players, whom the company has
sponsored for the past two NHL seasons, in
setting up and decorating the local community
center where the meal was held.
Diversified employees also helped to
prepare the food they would serve, served
some of the meals and greeted many of the
people who came to enjoy a rare homecooked
meal for them, says Cuellar.
Before they left, all attendees also took
home lunch bags with another meal and
$25 gift cards to local grocery stores, capping
what Cuellar calls " a very heartwarming
event. " In fact, it touched some Diversified
employees so much, they're looking to
do more with Loaves and Fishes.
" As we've grown, we've worked very,
very hard to be more involved in the communities
we serve, " says Cuellar. " We in
our industry have been so fortunate in our
businesses.
" (Diversified founder) Fred (D'Alessan38
Diversified
staffers joined San Jose Sharks players in serving meals to local homeless
people through the Loaves and Fishes program.
dro) has that same heart and (Diversified
president) Kevin (Collins) has that same
heart to be very thankful for the success
we've had and understand where we came
from, " he says.
Here's a closer look at Diversified's work
with the San Jose Sharks Foundation at the
Loaves and Fishes Thanksgiving Dinner:
More About Diversified's Philanthropy
Diversified has a...well, diverse offering
of philanthropy, including the Diversified
Foundation, an endeavor started about
three years ago when Houston area employees
were ravaged by Hurricane Harvey.
That fund is aimed at helping Diversified
employees in need and has recently been
tapped by those in Australia suffering
through that nation's wildfires.
" That's the core to our business and our
heart, " says Cuellar. " As we have employees
going through a family crisis around
the world, we want to be able to support
them. "
The company also started Diversified
Academy as a way of helping former
military veterans who are returning from
their service commitments transition
Commercial Integrator FEBRUARY 2021
back into so-called civilian life. Diversified
has also helped Habitat for Humanity, many
cancer research funds and much more.
" There are so many charitable and community
opportunities around the world, "
says Cuellar. " Local charities are where
we live, where we shop. There's always a
bike-a-thon or a blood drive or some kind
of fundraising for an employee's kid's Little
League team. You can't do them all.
" We absolutely did more in 2019 than
we did in 2018 and I fully anticipate we'll
do more in 2020 than we did in 2019, " he
says, noting the company is developing
a policy to allow those who want to serve
their communities to do it without taking
time off from work.
" We love when we can have a relationship
with a client and make it into a true
partnership, " says Cuellar. " That takes that
relationship to a whole new level. The need
is there, no question. There's more opportunity
to help than there was before.
" Giving money can be very easy. Giving
time can be a little more difficult, but it
shows a commitment and really takes that
giving to a different level, " he says.
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Commercial Integrator February 2021

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