Venterra Cares
Caring is who we are and what we do at Venterra. To reflect that, we give team members eight paid hours of volunteer time off each year for employees to lend a helping hand to causes that are important to them.
We are inspired by the ways our team members use their hours to serve their community, volunteering for opportunities they found on VolunteerMatch.org, activities our regional Venterra Cares Ambassadors have arranged, or simply opportunities within their community that speak to their hearts.
Our colleagues spend hundreds of Venterra Cares volunteer hours giving back each year, and our most recent Great Place to Work survey results showed that 9 out of 10 Venterra team members agree with the statement, “I feel good about the ways we contribute to the community.” From lending a helping hand at food banks to supporting animal shelters to cleaning up local beaches and parks, wherever there’s a Venterra team, you’re likely to find someone making their community a better place to live.
National Volunteer Week
To celebrate National Volunteer Week, we encourage team members to use their Volunteer Time Off to serve organizations in their community that are close to their hearts. As an added bonus, we hold a drawing at the end of the week for a $500 donation to the non-profit of the winner’s choice or to provide $100 gift cards to team members who pledged to use their paid volunteer hours during the quarter.
Megan Villarreal, who spent her hours volunteering with The Gatehouse outside of Dallas, TX, was one of our recent winners and chose to give her $500 donation to Ronald McDonald House in honor of her nephew, Mason. Here’s why:
“The day my nephew Mason was born in August 2015, he was care flown to Cook Children’s Hospital due to complications. He ended up having to stay in the NICU for two months. My sister lived three hours away from the hospital, so Ronald McDonald House was their second home during those months. The staff was so great and supportive and even entertained their five year old son as he was not fully aware of the situation.
They returned again to Ronald McDonald House when my nephew was 13 months old as he had to have open heart surgery.
Both times they stayed it was a great experience. It was one less thing they had to worry about during such a difficult time. This donation means a lot to me!”
Team member chat: one-on-one with stephanie bruce
“When Venterra started offering paid volunteer hours to employees, I knew I wanted to spend time helping my four-legged furry friends. I found a rescue shelter called Charming Pet Rescue and decided to spend my volunteer time there… I just can’t stay away! I have also fostered a few dogs along the way and currently have Sadie, a true sweetheart, waiting for a forever home.
Volunteering to help dogs always reminds me of one thing: when you adopt from a shelter, you save two lives – the one you adopt and the one who will take its place, not to mention the joy and companionship an animal brings to people. It’s a beautiful circle, and that thought is what keeps me going back each weekend!
Last year, for a birthday gift to me, the Community Managers in San Antonio decided to volunteer their own time at Charming Pet Rescue. When I say they volunteered their time, I’m not saying they just sat down and loved on some dogs. They built and cleaned out kennels, picked up after the dogs and so much more. It was very much a labor of love for me. It was the kindest thing anyone could have done and shows exactly the type of people Venterra employs – kind and caring people!
I’m not necessarily saying that I volunteer my free time to Charming Pet Rescue now because of Venterra, since my love for animals has always been there, but, rather, Venterra presented an opportunity that sparked an ongoing passion that allows me to give back in such a meaningful way.”
Our Support for Ukraine:
Venterra stepped up again this year to provide relief to Ukrainians by donating to the United4Ukraine fund. Between our colleagues donating more than $12,000 towards the effort and the organization’s contribution, we delivered just over $104,000 to the charity.
In speaking with the Ukrainian founders of the mission, we heard stories of countless people being directly helped through our financial aid. This included critical transportation out of high-risk areas, medical intervention in war hot spots, and shelter.
This is in addition to our prior year’s combined donation of over $75,000 to Save the Children’s effort to provide essential humanitarian assistance to those affected by the conflict.
