Gap Inc. Employees Volunteer Globally for Gap Foundation’s 40th Birthday

When a person turns 40, they might throw a party or go on vacation. When a foundation turns 40, it celebrates a little differently.

Gap Foundation turned 40 this year, and employees worldwide rallied together to celebrate by volunteering. There was an internal competition called the “Volunteer Rally” to drive participation and earn community grants for nonprofit partners, which resulted in giving more than 73,000 volunteer hours and $100,000 to communities where we live and work around the world.

Here’s how teams showed up globally:

CHINA

Volunteering more than 500 hours in a six-week timeframe, the China team brought their giving A-game to the celebration. Volunteer activities included helping the elderly community, visiting a children’s hospital, and supporting an animal shelter.

JAPAN

All HQ employees in Japan got together to volunteer for their annual Community Day. They broke out into seven groups to participate in activities like beach cleanup and making toys for foster children. Store teams joined in and achieved their goal of 100% volunteer participation, contributing more than 2,800 volunteer hours to the global total!

EUROPE

The EU store teams rallied together in a big way, volunteering 3,400 hours. That’s more than 150% more participation than last year. Through Volunteer Rally grants and employee donation drives, the teams donated more than $13,000 to causes they care about.

Our friends at HQ did things a little differently. Instead of using funds set aside for a party, they decided to put those dollars to “good” use in their community by donating to Prince’s Trust.

UNITED STATES

With 47,200 volunteer hours logged, there was no shortage of passion and participation from US store teams. Old Navy and Gap stores each contributed more than 21,000 volunteer hours alone!

Headquarter leaders are competitive in driving business results, and it doesn’t stop there. Leaders brought that same competitive spirit to volunteering. From coast to coast, HQ employees in New York and San Francisco logged 13,000 volunteer hours from all Gap Inc. brands. That’s 4X the total number of volunteer hours reported in 2016 for this six-week timeframe! Our Legal department alone had 70% team participation, and 63% Athleta HQ employees volunteered.

CANADA & MEXICO

Old Navy stores in Mexico and Canada all hit 100% volunteer participation! In Mexico, volunteer grant funds are being donated to Fondo Unido (United Way of Mexico) to support earthquake relief efforts.

Many stores in Canada hosted school supply drives as part of their ongoing partnerships with local nonprofits. Other volunteer activities included mentoring and coaching through the Boys & Girls Clubs of Canada. Old Navy store teams in Canada and the US are dedicating all Volunteer Rally grants to support hurricane recovery efforts, donating more than $21,000 to the Boys & Girls Club Hurricane Relief Fund.

VIETNAM, CAMBODIA, BANGLADESH & INDIA

But it doesn’t stop there. In Vietnam, headquarter employees cooked meals and handed them out to the homeless community. The Cambodia office repaired a road. In Bangalore and Delhi, employees planted trees. The International Sourcing team in Bangladesh raised money, bought supplies, and distributed them to local families affected by the recent flooding.

Gap Inc. is proud to volunteer all over the world, any time of the year. Celebrating Gap Foundation’s 40th birthday was just an excuse to step up again for our communities.

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