ESL employees donate thousands of hours every year to great non-profit organizations like the Salvation Army, Habitat for Humanity, Foodlink, Lifetime Assistance, and the United Way. And we support them by providing opportunities for paid time off so they can make an even bigger impact. So look around our community. You’ll often find dozens of people with our distinctive ESL VolunCare Crew T-shirts carrying on a great ESL tradition: volunteering to make Greater Rochester an even better place to live and work.
A Quick Look at Our VolunCare Program
it easy for employees to participate in a variety of volunteer programs every year through our Employee Volunteer Program — or, as we prefer to call it, our “VolunCare” Program. After all, caring about people is one of our five core values!
Here’s how our program works
- We choose important, community-building activities and events that align with the goals of our VolunCare Program and that need volunteers.
- Eligible employees may receive up to eight hours of paid time off each year to participate in VolunCare Crew activities.
- ESL employees can choose from several different community volunteer opportunities each year, including a non-profit organization of their own choosing!
It’s all part of our effort to help our neighbors and make a vital contribution to our community.
Of course, volunteering is also a great experience for our employees, because it builds teamwork. It provides learning and networking opportunities. It’s truly rewarding on a personal level. And it’s a lot of fun, too.
Key Stats
These numbers speak volumes about the importance of volunteering at ESL.
In 2024, 400+ ESL employees contributed more than 2,607 volunteer hours to more than 165 different non-profits in the region.
Popular causes included:
- Blood donations with the Red Cross
- Families and community with the United Way Day of Caring, Ronald McDonald House, Habitat for Humanity, Hamlin Beach Clean Up, many places of worship, and more!
- Food insecurity with St. Peter’s Kitchen, Foodlink, Mission Share, Irondequoit Community Cupboard, and others.
- Animal welfare with Keller’s Kate Rescue, Verona Street Animal Society, Hamlin Dog Shelter, Lollypop Farm, Mr. Grey’s Strays, and others.
- Childhood education and development with the Generation 2 Program at the Strong Museum, Junior Achievement, and many local schools.
- Veterans with One Soldier at a Time, Veterans Outreach Center, and Eagle Star Housing.
- Leadership in our community with many of our employees serving on the boards of local non-profit organizations.
Caring about others — and the Rochester community — is one of the things we do best at ESL! That’s why our VolunCare Crew is such a great thing
