Whether it's letting someone with only a few items go in front of you in line at a grocery store, donating school supplies, or even giving a heartfelt compliment, there's something so gratifying about "paying it forward." At Kin + Carta, we strive to make this type of kindness part of our culture, which is why our Philanthropy Committee is so important to our organization.
Kin + Carta Pays it FWD
Our Philanthropy Committee is a self-organized group of Kin who volunteer to make big impact inside and outside of the firm. The committee welcomes all who are eager to be a part of planning monthly volunteer events, strategize long-term community impact and contribute to our firm culture that is committed to making a difference in our communities.
This fall, the Philanthropy Committee organized one of our favorite days of the year — Pay it FWD, what we call our annual day of giving back. It’s during this day that Kin step away from work to volunteer together. Over the past four years of celebrating Pay it FWD, the breadth of our impact has grown, and so has our Kin’s grassroots efforts and passion to serve.
This year, 165 Kin across six of our office locations donated their time, expertise and care to 22 charitable organizations.
Pay it FWD is so important to us. Everyday we get to be a part of building a world that works better for everyone, and this annual event expands the mission-driven impact we’re able to make together across the communities we live and work within.
Anne Savage Americas Chief of Staff
Are you looking for ways to make an impact? Take a peek at how we celebrated Pay it FWD 2021 and explore volunteer opportunities.
What happened?
Volunteer teams joined in-person from Buenos Aires, Chicago, Denver, New York and Portland and virtually from across all of the Americas.
From organization to organization, there was no shortage of ways to get involved. Some Kin spent their afternoon at a food pantry — re-stocking and cleaning shelves and prepping food boxes for delivery. Another group volunteered both virtually and in-person, processing donations and creating a donation database with a non-profit that supports children in vulnerable situations. One team picked up trash across a park, while another provided website design recommendations for a community center. Others were engaged in creating cards, animal socialization, and even recording the reading of children’s books for children currently hospitalized. The range of activities allowed Kin to support missions and visions that they are most passionate about.
Here are some of our favorite photos from the day:
Bengisu, J, Joe, Kate and Sri at The Chicago Youth Center after winterizing the garden and putting away lawn furniture.
A global team of Kin supporting the Smithsonian’s Transcription Center to make the digitized library, archival and museum collections more accessible.
Ailen, Angeles, Belen, Cami, Celina and Sofia in Buenos Aires, prior to volunteering with Fundación Casa Grande where they sorted donations into storage.
Ayla, Hellen, Philip and TJ at A Precious Child in Denver — they spent the afternoon helping families find supplies and clothes in a precious child’s free store.
Many teams coordinated their own happy hours, after a day of volunteering. Check out some of our Kin, after they spent the afternoon picking up trash at a park near our Portland office.
But these pictures represent less than one quarter of the incredible work done on Pay it FWD 2021. Here is the complete list of the incredible organizations who welcomed us for the day and gave us the opportunity to support their missions: A Precious Child, Chicago Youth Centers, Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, ECDC African Community Center of Denver, Feed My Starving Children, Food Bank of the Rockies, Fundación Casa Grande, Habitat for Humanity International, Lakeview Pantry, Loving Companions Animal Rescue, Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, Meals on Wheels America, Metro Caring, National MS Society, Open Books, PAWS Chicago, Plant Chicago, Portland Homeless Family Solutions, SOLVE Oregon, Rocky Mountain Feline Rescue, Smithsonian Institution & Volunteers of America
Beyond the day of Pay it FWD, we recently announced a plan to donate funds to each organization we volunteered with as part of Giving Tuesday in the United States and Un Día Para Dar in Argentina and Colombia.
It was rewarding (and so much fun!) to see tangible impact across the communities we volunteered within, and we never take for granted any time that we can spend with one another. We’re already counting down until next year’s Pay it FWD!