Written By: Megan Stoy, Marketing Coordinator
No matter the industry, companies in today’s business climate aim to create ways to differentiate themselves.
Product or service offerings can be a differentiator, but consumers are increasingly more interested in ‘feel good’ initiatives that companies support. These initiatives can take many shapes and sizes and are often determined by a group of team members within the organization who have been tasked with leading the effort and campaigning for support. A large component of launching successful fundraising and charitable initiatives is gaining ‘buy-in’ from the organization. At MD Logistics, we rely heavily on our company culture and the feedback we receive internally in order to make a difference locally. One of the many things our company culture supports is giving back to our own community. As a result, there are a few organizations that we choose to support throughout the year.
We support two local chapters of national organizations by holding two major fundraisers each year. In the spring, we enjoy selling t-shirts to raise money for the American Diabetes Association. More specially, the money that we raise is donated to Camp John Warvel, a camp for diabetic children in Central Indiana. Every year, Camp John Warvel facilitates a traditional summer camp experience in a medically safe environment for children with diabetes. Sponsorships go towards creating a fun camp experience, and providing resources to teach the campers about diabetes self-care. Campers learn how to manage their diabetes, often for the first time, and make new friends, all while overcoming feelings of isolation, and gaining confidence. Campers at Camp John Warvel get to enjoy a traditional camp experience, including swimming, kayaking, canoeing, rope climbing, arts and crafts, horseback riding, and archery, all with the security of 24 hour medical supervision. For many of the campers, this is the first time that they have had a traditional camp experience, “I am having so much fun at the 2018 diabetes camp. Thank you for sponsoring the camp. It is a blast!!”, writes one camp participant. It is important to our team to support the American Diabetes Association due to our close work within the life sciences and pharmaceuticals industry. We understand that our work makes a direct impact on the lives of individuals across the world, especially young children. By giving back in this capacity, we believe we are making a difference in a child’s life.
Another organization that we like to support as a company is the American Heart Association. In November of 2007, our friend and co-founder, Dave Kiebach passed away suddenly from a massive heart attack. Dave was a big part of all of our lives, so in his memory we support an organization who is committed to heart disease education and prevention efforts. Heart Disease remains the leading cause of death in adults[1] in the United States. By supporting our local American Heart Association’s Heart Walk each September, we are not only supporting research efforts, but are also keeping Dave’s memory alive.
In addition to supporting the American Heart Association, MD Logistics also sponsors a charity golf tournament in honor of our late founder, Dave. In its eleventh year, the Dave Kiebach Memorial Golf Tournament raises money to support the Dave Kiebach Smile Fund in care of the Hendricks County Community Foundation. This fund supports local causes and organizations that treat the needs of the community’s children and underserved individuals, something that was near and dear to Dave. Those needs include children who are hungry, lack clothing, have healthcare demands or need funds for advanced education. Each September, new and old friends of MD Logistics and Dave, gather together to play a little golf, have a lot of laughs, and raise money for deserving organizations in the greater Hendricks County area.
The act of giving back is an important part of our company culture here at MD Logistics. This sentiment is echoed throughout the organization, from the executive team all the way out onto the warehouse floor. It has been deeply engrained in our being since our founding nearly 22 years ago. President and CEO, Mark Sell, says it perfectly, “It has always been important to me to support local causes as a company that mean something to our people and the culture that we have worked hard to build. At MD Logistics, we all work hard to enjoy the successes that we have accomplished as a company. To whom much success is given, much is expected and we enjoy doing just that by giving back to our communities and making a difference in our very own backyards. I could not be more proud of our MD Logistics team for their continued support of our fundraising and charitable efforts.”
To learn more about the American Heart Association, American Diabetes Association, or the Dave Kiebach Memorial Golf Tournament, take a look at their websites.
Resources –
[1] http://www.heart.org/idc/groups/ahamah-public/@wcm/@sop/@smd/documents/downloadable/ucm_498848.pdf?utm_campaign=sciencenews17-18&utm_source=science-news&utm_medium=heart&utm_content=phd01-31-18
