"An organization called Best Companies Group rates the best places to work in America, state by state. A company applies for the right to be surveyed, and its employees are contacted and quizzed anonymously on 65 workplace topics. In 2006, many Kentucky companies were scrutinized and rated. Two Top-20 lists emerged, one each for large and medium-sized companies.
All of these companies have one important thing in common — workplace excellence. Pay, benefits, a pleasant work environment and interesting challenges were factors in an employee's opinion of their company. But I also suspect another factor helped them to declare their employer one of Kentucky's "best" - the fact that the company has an interest in its community and wants to give back in some way.
Companies that work for the betterment of their communities not only win friends but also help their own bottom line, because supporting community projects gives a business visibility, helps it develop a positive reputation and attracts good employees.
That's where community blood donation comes in. Central Kentucky Blood Center (CKBC) collects all of the blood used in 67 hospitals and clinics in Central and Eastern Kentucky. We do it at four donor centers in Lexington, Somerset, Pikeville and Prestonsburg, but also at 1,400 mobile drives staged in dozens of communities across 59 counties. We visit many types of businesses, as well as churches, schools and civic groups.
One outstanding example of a medium-sized company with a big heart is American Woodmark, located in Monticello, in Wayne County. Looking back over 2005 and the first 10 months of 2006, this high-quality woodworking and home decoration company has provided us with nearly 500 blood donations. The Blood Center's recruiter for those drives, Loretta Robinson, tells me that American Woodmark's management is wonderful when it comes to staging drives, is well-organized and always looks for ways to improve employee participation. That's fantastic.
What impact has American Woodmark (AW) made? Each donation is broken down into three blood products — red cells, platelets and plasma — each of which can be used to help a different hospital patient. So over the past two years, AW's employees are responsible for helping improve or save the lives of about 1,500 fellow Kentuckians in need of blood.
Your company doesn't need hundreds of employees to improve healthcare in your area by sponsoring a blood drive. Size doesn't have anything to do with a company's willingness to improve its community. Since the beginning of 2005, nearly 23,000 blood donations have been made by donor groups listed as a business in our service area. If you're not one of the businesses sponsoring blood drives, the Blood Center would love to partner with you to improve your community by giving back in a safe and simple way.
A donor recruitment specialist will work with your company to schedule blood drives and help promote them. On the day of the blood drive, our staff will arrive and quickly prepare the site with equipment and supplies brought with them. All your company needs do is to provide the site and an hour of time for your employees to donate. Big or small, your company can have a huge impact in your region by letting your employees help others through blood donation — the gift of life.
CKBC invites you to join the nearly 2,000 donor groups that hold drives. You'll be sharing life and showing your employees that your company cares about the community. For more information about holding blood drives, contact Donor Services Director Martha Osborne at Central Kentucky Blood Center at 859-276-2534, or learn more by visiting our Web site, ckbc.org.
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