Summer 2022
GSF Foundation Volunteers Build and Donate Nearly 400 Children’s Bikes
This spring and summer, GSF associates across the U.S. have teamed up with local nonprofits and schools to donate brand new bikes to children in need. A total of 11 local teams participated in the GSF Foundation’s Bike Build program, with 394 bicycles donated to youth in the communities where associates live and work. In addition to bikes, the children get helmets, locks, and an opportunity to spend time building their own two-wheeler with GSFF volunteers and community partners.

"It was great to get back out there and volunteer in person with the kids this year. Not only do these children take home a fully assembled bike, but they also learn how to build it themselves with a GSFF mentor who teaches them new skills, demonstrating the importance of hard work and boosting their self-confidence."

– Vanessa Hugon, Programs and Development Manager, GSF Foundation

This year, Vanessa and the Irvine, California GSFF team volunteered to be a "big for the day,” building 35 bikes with children on the waitlist for Orange County’s Big Brothers Big Sisters mentorship program. As a Big Sister who already mentors a Little Sister, Vanessa inspired fellow associates to partner with the local nonprofit on the Foundation’s Bike Build for the first time this year. The Irvine volunteers invited officers from the Santa Ana Police Department to support the event with helmet fittings and a bike safety obstacle course for the kids.

Collaborating with community partners that associates select and engage locally, each GSFF committee coordinates core Foundation programs like the Bike Build in a way that best meets the needs of children and families in their area. For more details about 2022 bike donations from Foundation teams around the U.S., read the full story linked from the bottom below.
GSFF Volunteers Donate Over 1,400 Service Hours So Far in 2022
Congratulations to the Foundation teams from QCD Charlotte, North Carolina (253 hours), KanPak Kansas (245 hours), and QCD Frisco, Texas (226 hours) for leading all local facility teams in volunteer hours during the second quarter of 2022! Overall, associates volunteered 1,400+ service hours across the Foundation's 28 U.S. Committees in the first and second quarters.

Additionally, congratulations to the following associates who volunteered 20 hours or more this year to achieve GSFF's 20th Anniversary volunteer hours challenge during the second quarter of 2022:

  • Ann Mulvaney, KanPak New York
  • Arianna Castro, KanPak Kansas
  • Brande Bond, QCD Frisco
  • Carol Fawcett, GSF Irvine
  • Chelsea Ramirez, KanPak Kansas
  • Connie Shire, KanPak Kansas
  • Dan Smith, KanPak Kansas
  • Denise Brown, GSF Irvine
  • Jason Van Dorn, GSF Irvine
  • Jennifer Meyerer, KanPak Kansas
  • Jessica O'donnell, KanPak Kansas
  • Jessica Ochoa, KanPak Kansas
  • Joni Smith, GSF Conyers
  • Kate Starr, GSF Irvine
  • Leah Passignano, GSF Irvine
  • Marla Barr, QCD Frisco
  • Rob Belleque, GSF City of Industry Manufacturing
  • Shannon Hage, GSF City of Industry Manufacturing
  • Shellie Frey, GSF Irvine
  • Sue Tutt, QCD Frisco
  • Susan Quezada, GSF City of Industry Manufacturing
  • Tasha Gore, GSF Burleson
  • Terry Fulks, GSF Opelika

In celebration of GSFF's 20-year milestone this year, GSF Foundation challenges associates to heighten their volunteer service. Associates have the opportunity to win a limited edition Carhartt sweatshirt by volunteering 20 hours or more in 2022 and logging their hours using the form on the GSF Foundation page of the GSF associate Intranet site. During the first and second quarters of 2022, a total of 33 associates have completed the challenge!
GSFF’s New Interactive Wall Celebrates Associates’ Positive Community Impact
This summer, the GSF Foundation revealed its new interactive wall at the GSF corporate headquarters in Irvine, California. Spanning 28 feet across the wall, digital displays and a touch-screen kiosk highlight GSFF core programs, Partnership for Good supporters, volunteer quotes, a map of local committees, and total in-kind and grant donations made since the Foundation’s inception in 2002.

“Anyone who sees this wall will immediately understand how important giving back is to our associates, who have accomplished so much and will continue to accomplish much more through their generosity and caring. As the GSF Foundation celebrates 20 years of positive impact in the communities where associates live and work, there’s no better time to commemorate our associates’ continued contributions and inspire their future involvement in the decades ahead!”

– Tess McAnena, Executive Director, GSF Foundation

Check out the video linked below for a closer look at the new Foundation wall!
In The News
GSF Foundation Awards $170,000 In Grants to Local Food Banks Through “Focus On Food” Initiative In May
To support local food banks in their efforts to alleviate hunger, GSF Foundation teams made grants that collectively provided the equivalent of 734,000 meals for food-insecure children and families all around the United States.
Foundation provides Virginia Peninsula Food Bank $15K grant to support families facing food insecurity
QCD Suffolk, Virginia volunteers presented the Virginia Peninsula Food Bank with a grant of $15,000 to help relieve childhood hunger during the summer months when school lunch programs pause and food insecurity heightens.
Opelika Public Library Unveils GSF Foundation Musical Garden
The GSF Opelika, Alabama Foundation team provided a grant donation to support the opening of the GSF Foundation Musical Garden at the Opelika Public Library on July 30.
Sharing Your Stories
This summer, the Irvine GSF Foundation team presented a grant donation to Team Kids to support local elementary students with a Team Kids Challenge for the upcoming school year. The nonprofit organization empowers kids to change the world through innovative service programs delivered from home, school, and in their community. In July, volunteers partnered with Team Kids to help read and organize children's letters to military heroes. The touching experience of reading the children's innocent and unfiltered words inspired many hearty laughs and even some tears among volunteers.
“It was such a pleasure reading the sweet letters from the kids to all our military heroes. It was an endearing moment that touched us all and had us giggling too. (There were lots of creative stories and jokes.) It was a great way to spend the afternoon!”

– Denise Brown, Corporate Accounting Supervisor, GSF Irvine
Quiz for A Kids' Cause
Enter for a Chance to Win a $250 Donation
Congratulations to Arenthia Brothers of QCD Orlando!
Arenthia Brothers, Customer Service Coordinator for QCD Orlando, has won the spring Heartline Quiz for a Kids' Cause and will receive a $250 donation to the ChaseN'Tailz, a South Florida nonprofit dedicated to changing the lives of families with children experiencing life-threatening illnesses.

Don't miss your next quick and simple opportunity to win a $250 donation to your children's charity of choice. The GSF Foundation invites Heartline readers to take a quiz about this newsletter edition by September 30, 2022:
About GSFF's Quiz for A Kids' Cause
  • All correct quiz responses received by September 30, 2022 will be entered into this quarter's random drawing for one $250 donation to the winner's eligible children's charity of choice.
  • Eligible charities include GSFF Local Committees and non-profit 501(c)3 organizations that align with the GSF Foundation's mission of improving the lives of children and families in need in the places where GSF associates live and work.