Life at Applied
5 Minute Read
Date Published: Decemeber 12, 2024
By: Tarra Seawright
Life at Applied
5 Minute Read
Date Published: Decemeber 12, 2024
By: Tarra Seawright
As we embrace this season of giving, we are extra focused on supporting our communities. At Applied, this spirit of generosity is a fundamental part of our culture all year long. Our dedicated program, Applied Cares, fosters strong bonds with our local community and actively contributes to its social, environmental and economic growth. We aim to create a positive impact and reinforce our commitment to social responsibility by engaging in local events, associating ourselves with charitable causes, and driving community initiatives.
At Applied, our charitable efforts and volunteerism are rooted in our four key pillars: education, technology, sustainable communities, and economic empowerment. These pillars are the foundation of our strategic philosophy, guiding our partnerships and ensuring our contributions are meaningful and impactful.
Education: We’re dedicated to advancing science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields and preparing a tech-savvy workforce.
Technology: We aim to foster the next generation of innovators and tech leaders.
Sustainable Communities: We work to improve living conditions and promote sustainability.
Economic Empowerment: We strive to provide opportunities that enhance economic prospects in our communities.
During October, we joined forces with the Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation (IICF) for their Month of Giving Project. A pillar in the community for three decades, IICF has been bringing the insurance industry together through grant funding, community service, and leadership commitment. The foundation has been successful, providing nearly $50 million in grants to over a thousand non-profit entities and accruing more than 340,000 volunteer hours so far.
For more than 10 years, we at Applied have been enthusiastic supporters of IICF’s Midwest Division, which is based in Chicago. We’re proud to have Darcy Waddel, our VP and Client Executive, on the IICF board in the Midwest Division and Courtney Rains, our Chief Marketing Officer, on the IICF board in Georgia. These engagements have enabled us to help raise $5 million in grants for over 200 nonprofits across the Midwest region.
During IICF's Month of Giving project, we provided a variety of virtual and on-ground involvement opportunities for both individuals and teams. We're proud to mention that we also donated almost $25,000 and volunteered 300 hours. This was our way of contributing to the IICF's Month of Giving and empowering our communities.
Some of the many charitable organizations Team Applied loves to support, and there are quite a few, include:
There are many notable examples of Applied employees paying it forward this year, and we expect to see even more this holiday season:
Marjorie Bettany, quality analyst, and her family often volunteer at the Windsor LifeLine Outreach. This organization provides food and clothing to those in need and has a soup program that runs seven days a week, feeding people experiencing homelessness.
Ann Marie Colehour, People Team VP, and her family volunteered at Beyond Hunger food pantry in Chicago. The pantry provides hunger-relief programming within the Chicagoland area.
Our Atlanta team, along with friends and family, marched in the Atlanta Pride Parade, supporting The Atlanta Pride Committee, Georgia's oldest non-profit agency serving the LGBTQ community. On June 30, Pride at Applied Community of Interest volunteers came together to represent Applied at the 53rd annual Chicago Pride Parade – where more than 1 million people came out to support and celebrate the LGBTQIA+ community in Chicagoland. We also have a Pride at Applied Community of Interest that supports this cause year-round.
Representatives from one of our Applied Communities of Interest, Black at Applied, volunteered at a golf event benefiting 5 Strong. For three years, we’ve proudly partnered with the 5 Strong Scholarship Foundation, whose mission is to improve retention and graduation rates at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs).
Another one of our spectacular Applied Communities of Interest, Veterans of Applied, hosted a session on veterans’ mental health on November 26 along with Home Base, an organization that focuses on health and well-being for veterans and their families.
I hope you received more insight into the four pillars and how our team members get involved. As we enter the holiday season and the New Year, we are thinking about how to make an even bigger impact in our community and beyond. Want to learn more about Life at Applied and our amazing culture? Check out our other Life at Applied articles.
Sr. Manager of Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging
Tarra Seawright is Sr. Manager of Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging at Applied. She has been involved with Diversity and Inclusion for more than 10 years and her objective is to drive the DIB initiative making a powerful impact to our workforce, workplace and marketplace. Seawright is a graduate of Florida A&M University with a degree in Journalism and a minor in African American Novel.
