Our IBSS employees are always looking for ways to make a difference. This year, IBSS was able to expand our giving by adding another satellite office to our donation locations. Team members prepared and distributed food boxes for Thanksgiving, provided toiletries to a service center, and donated toys and gifts for the holiday gift-giving season! They’re also preparing winter gear care packages for the homeless.
PROJECT GIVEBACK PROVIDES FOOD FOR THANKSGIVING
Several employees from the headquarters (HQ) area went to the DC Armory to join Project GiveBack’s 28th Annual Thanksgiving Food Distribution event to pack Thanksgiving meal boxes for needy families in the DC-Maryland-Virginia (DMV) area on Saturday, November 19. At the Armory, IBSS volunteers joined numerous other volunteers to assemble over 4,000 food boxes.
In the past, our company’s involvement consisted of packing boxes, but this year we expanded our involvement to also help with distribution. After packing the boxes, IBSS team members took 220 meal boxes and headed to the Silver Spring International Middle School (SSIMS), a school that IBSS has partnered with for other volunteer initiatives, to distribute these boxes to SSIMS families. Many of the SSIMS families are financially disadvantaged so this assistance provided food security for the Thanksgiving holiday.
Richard Solomon, Resource Counselor at SSIMS, expressed his gratitude, “A quick trip to the grocery store to pay for food with a credit card is not the reality for some families who are living day by day depending on whatever work can be found, so even a modest box of groceries makes a big difference. . . . It is clear that IBSS prioritizes the needs of the community in which the business is located. I look forward to our continued partnership and I hope you enjoy a restful Thanksgiving.”
After the meal boxes were delivered to the families in need at SSIMS, IBSS still had boxes leftover, so they went to a nearby low-income apartment building where they distributed the remaining boxes.
TOILETRIES FOR THANKSGIVING DRIVE IN MASSACHUSETTS
As our company has grown, so has our outreach. This is the third year that our Northeast Fisheries Science Center (NEFSC) employees gathered toiletry items for the Falmouth Service Center (FSC) in Falmouth, MA, the area’s main center for assistance. Our NEFSC team started making their donations in 2020 during COVID, and due to health restrictions at that time, FSC was not able to take food donations but they requested toiletries instead since there’s always a need for those items. Our team has continued the tradition of providing toiletries around Thanksgiving to help restock these necessary items.
The service center was very happy and appreciative to receive the donation. We’d like to send a special shout-out to Lacey Bluemel, Northeast Fisheries Program Manager, along with Lauren Kirkpatrick, Heather Soulen, and Joan Palmer, who donated items. Together these four folks donated about $175 worth of toiletries!
Sharon Howard, Volunteer Coordinator at FSC, shared these kind words, “Thank you so much for delivering such a thoughtful and generous donation of feminine hygiene products, bath soap, shampoo, conditioner, and laundry detergent. Our clients find the addition of these items so helpful when doing their weekly grocery shopping at the Service Center. All told, there were more than four bags of these items and this will go a long way toward helping our clients when they arrive here following the Thanksgiving holiday. Your generosity is truly a great gift to our neighbors in need who are really struggling during these challenging economic times. We hope you enjoy the Thanksgiving holiday knowing that you have given so much to so many.”
HOLIDAY GIFTS
As Thanksgiving wound down, the winter holiday season wound up, and IBSS staff stepped up in amazing ways to help our communities!
GIFTS FOR SSIMS
The headquarters (HQ) office connected with SSIMS and asked if we could provide gifts for a handful of students during the holiday season. While SSIMS was delayed in responding, they requested gifts for 19 students. HQ put out a call to our staff nationwide, and the response was spectacular! In less than 1 week, gifts for 19 students had arrived at HQ; and Nijel Redrick, IBSS Director of Governance, Risk Management, and Compliance and IBSS liaison with SSIMS; delivered the items to the school before students went on holiday break.
GIFTS FOR TEATICKET ELEMENTARY
For the third year in a row, the IBSS Northeast Fisheries Science Center Team held a holiday toy/gift drive to benefit children at the Teaticket Elementary School in Falmouth, Massachusetts.
Program Manager, Lacey Bluemel, worked with the school’s Adjustment Counselor, Helene Goetz, to obtain the wishlists of 5 children whose parents are having a tough time financially this year. The kids’ ages, clothing sizes, favorite colors, and toy wishes for the upcoming Holiday season were provided and Lacey’s awesome team heeded the call and gave generously!
Three girls; ages 5, 8, and 9, and two boys; ages 8 and 9 will be opening some exciting gifts come Christmas morning! Desired items that were purchased included LOTS of craft kits, art supplies, chapter books, Champion sweatshirts, rain boots, and tractor toys.
Thank you to everyone who supported this initiative!
GIFTS FOR RUTH HILL ELEMENTARY
Robby Lee, IBSS Proposal Writer, spearheaded efforts to provide holiday gifts for a family at Ruth Hill Elementary School in Newnan, GA. Many of our IBSS team members who work on the DoDEA contract in Peachtree City donated items to provide students with presents this holiday season. The team donated clothes, pajamas, board games, dolls, roller skates, and even a bicycle!
As Robby said, “It’s truly a blessing to be able to extend our efforts to the community in need here.” This shows the heart of our IBSS work family and how giving is part of our culture!
BLANKET DRIVE
As we end this year with arctic cold temperatures, HQ is hosting the third annual Blanket Drive to provide blankets and winter gear to the homeless in the DMV area.
HQ had been collecting blankets for several weeks and will continue to receive donations until January 15, 2023. Employees in the DMV will distribute care packages in their local communities between December 24 and February 15. Employees not in the DMV area are encouraged to create their own care packages and distribute them to the homeless in their communities.
Brue Arvand kicked off the blanket distribution on Saturday, December 24. He sent out an email to employees thanking them for their generosity, “I would like to thank you all for your compassion to help less fortunate beings during this magical season. I have already received lots of blankets, socks, hats, sleeping bags, gloves, and masks from all of your kind hearts. The temperature was 6 degrees in DC this morning. Denzil Genus, one of our bright Cybersecurity apprentices, helped me to distribute your generous contributions to the homeless living in the summer tents this morning. Authorities have been moving some of the homeless to shelters due to severe cold temperatures. We drove around DC and were able to distribute 18 gift packages. I thank you all from the bottom of my heart and wish you all a joyous Holiday season and a Happy New Year filled with love, health, peace, joy, and happiness!”
GRATITUDE
IBSS is grateful to our staff who contributed to these various outreach efforts and to those who participated in other ways in their local communities. We are excited to have expanded our efforts into Georgia with Robby Lee’s help. Now our presence is consistently in three locations. We look forward to next year and being able to further expand our outreach.
ABOUT IBSS
Since 1992, IBSS, a women-owned small business and Certified B Corporation, has provided transformational consulting services to the Federal defense, civilian, and commercial sectors. Our services include cybersecurity and enterprise information technology, environmental science and engineering (including oceans, coasts, climate, and weather), and professional management services.
Our approach is to serve our employees by investing in their growth and development. As a result, our employees bring greater capabilities and provide an exceptional level of service to our clients. In addition to creating career development opportunities for our employees, IBSS is passionate about giving back to the community and serving the environment. We strive to leave something better behind for the next generation.
We measure our success by the positive impact we have on our employees, clients, partners, and the communities we serve. Our tagline, Powered by Excellence, is a recognition of the employees that make up IBSS and ensures we deliver results with quality, applying industry best practices and certifications. Read more About Us.
