Every year, members of the ASEA corporate staff participate in a week of service planned in alliance with the ASEA Advancing Life Foundation, which is dedicated to helping others in need throughout the community.
ASEA has been holding service events with the motto ‘Have an Impact, Make a Difference’ for years, and the company has dedicated several times each year for that cause. This year, they started our annual service week off with corporate staff participating in a blood drive to help replenish a local blood bank. The staff produced twenty units of blood, which overall will contribute to helping save an estimated sixty lives. Seventeen new donors volunteered to give blood and help the cause.
Later on that week, ASEA staff helped a local nonprofit named Sleep in Heavenly Peace with the building of bunk beds for children in need. Their mission is to make sure no kid sleeps on the floor. The organization found that too many children live in homes that cannot afford proper beds and many children end up sleeping on the floor or couch without so much as a blanket or pillow. They’ve been actively fulfilling that promise with a team of volunteers dedicated to building, assembling, and delivering top-notch bunk beds to children and families across the state of Utah. Sleep in Heavenly Peace is actively working on opening more chapters in different states to serve more families.
“I love all the opportunities ASEA provides to serve and give back to the community. During our last service week, I was able to participate in 2 of the projects: Sleep in Heavenly Peace & Tabitha’s Way. Each was a different experience, however, the one thing that was the same with both projects was the unity and comradery felt between all volunteers,” said Hannah Mangum, Opportunity Manager, and Service Week Volunteer.
ASEA scheduled a build day in which volunteers with drills, sanders, saws, and paint brushes aided in the building of the beds. Experienced volunteers showed the staff how to complete various stages of the construction process. Our team of volunteers completed 18 full bunk beds and ASEA paid for 20 bunk beds including bedding, materials, and everything else needed for twenty beds. This project kept 40 kids from sleeping on the floor and gave them their own beds to sleep in.
The week ended with a push to feed hungry families as teams of volunteers devoted two days of service at Tabitha’s Way Food Pantry in American Fork, Utah to help sort and distribute donated food items to local families. Tabitha’s Way provides food and supplies to an average of five thousand individuals monthly and has been in operation since 2010.
“When you are able to see the direct effects of your service and do it with a group of people, especially a group that you already love and respect, there’s definitely a special feeling that is contagious and fulfilling. I love that helping and serving others is so important here at ASEA. It is making a difference in the community, the world, but also for those of us fortunate enough to participate in each service project,” says Mangum.