Corporate volunteer days are an excellent way for companies and their employees to give back to the community. The Center is always in need of corporate groups to come and help us care for our patients.
Employees sort fish for seal feeds
"We had an excellent time at The Marine Mammal Center. The staff did a great job educating our employees about the Center’s mission and exactly what they do to rehabilitate their animals. A day at the Center is a great way to get out of the office and contribute to a good cause in a very hands-on manner."
Michael Sahm, Senior Associate | Triage Consulting Group
|
You’ll start your day in the ocean view board room learning about the Center with a brief presentation on the type of animal rescue work we do. Then you’ll roll up your sleeves and literally get your hands dirty sorting fish for our patients’ next mealtime. Afterwards, you’ll take a private tour of the Center with an engaging docent who can answer all of your questions as you peek into our lab and see the patients on-site that day from a special viewing platform. Here’s a breakdown of just what the day looks like – although you’re welcome to extend the day with a clean up at the beach or a breathtaking hike in the beautiful Marin Headlands. We even have picnic tables on site where you can hear the ocean and take a break from your hard day’s work helping the Center as a volunteer. A sample schedule follows, but we’re happy to customize the day just for your group. 8:45-9:00am |
|
The Center requires a corporate donation for each corporate volunteer day. This donation is tax-deductible and goes toward our mission: to expand knowledge about marine mammals—their health and that of their ocean environment—and to inspire their global conservation. Our core work is the rescue and rehabilitation of sick and injured marine mammals. We partner with leading scientists and other professionals in order to learn from the patients in our care - patients from healthy, endangered, and at-risk populations - and to expand and advance scientific knowledge, thus enhancing understanding of the health of our oceans and the implications for human health. The size of the donation varies with the size of the group - up to two groups of fifteen from the same company can attend at one time.
For more information, contact Cheryl Reiss, Corporate and Community Partnerships Officer at reissc@tmmc.org or at (415) 754-4052.
Corporate volunteer days can be very rewarding for all involved, as can be seen from this testimonial from Rachael Shander, Director of Sourcing, Textiles, Pottery Barn Kids:
"I really admire the work that they’re doing,” Rachael says. “These people are really making a difference.”
Organizing the event turned out to be easier than she anticipated. The idea came to her after staff was urged to organize activities that would bring the team together. She got additional support from Christina Nicholson, director of Sustainable Development at Williams-Sonoma. Rachael had no trouble recruiting associates to use their time. “I sent out an email, and immediately I had a line in my office,” she recalls. “People were so excited. They just said, ‘This is so amazing.’”
They were not disappointed. With the smell of the ocean in the air, they sorted and prepped fish to feed the animals, and toured the Center. “They got down and dirty prepping meals,” says Rachael. “They learned about the animals – what they’re rescued from, how they’re cared for.”
As it turns out, Rachael didn’t get to attend the event due to a last-minute work trip to Hong Kong. But she was thrilled to hear that associates forged new connections with each other – and made a strong impression. And Rachael got her own Center fix a few months later when she attended the release of four sea lions who were rehabilitated from malnourishment and illness. She captured the moment at Rodeo Beach in a video on her cell phone that shows the sea lions bobbing along the sand toward the water, their eyes wide and their whiskers gleaming in the late-day sun. They look healthy and eager, as Rachael puts it, “to go back home.” “
“It puts things in perspective,” she says. “You need to be able to take the time to get out of your head and do something outside these four walls. It’s easier to use your CIT time than you think. It’s really just making that commitment to yourself and doing it.”
Employees give back with a day at the Center
