Volunteers from Regions Bank and Maynard Nexsen teamed up with United Way Hands On in April to construct raised garden beds and a 9 Square court at Brookside Boys & Girls Club. The kids who attend the club joined in the fun by filling the garden beds with soil, planting vegetables and breaking in the new game court.
This is the fifth Boys & Girls Club project these groups have tackled together, with the most recent being in Pell City. When asked why their group decided to participate, Robert Waller, a Corporate Associate at Maynard Nexsen, said, “Our company encourages us to give back to our community, and we try to [do that] as much as possible. This culture of service is company-wide, with senior associates setting the example from the top down.”
Regions Bank also sets an example as a service-oriented company, and when asked specifically why those volunteers chose the Boys & Girls Club projects, Assistant General Counsel Bradley Blair said, “Anytime you get to work with kids and teach them something, it’s rewarding. Regions employees volunteer throughout the year, and the department together identified this opportunity as particularly positive for a lot of reasons, including that several employees had been previous members of Boys & Girls Clubs wherever they grew up.”
Todd Love, Area Director of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Alabama, said, “We were delighted that United Way Hands On connected the Boys & Girls Club of Brookside with Maynard Nexsen and Regions Bank. Our young members had so much fun planting the seeds and playing the new game that they forgot they were learning something about healthy lifestyles. We cannot thank all of these organizations enough for their giving hearts. Without partners like them, the Boys & Girls Club of Brookside would not be able to impact the youth we serve.” To learn how you can get involved in projects such as this, visit Volunteer – United Way of Central Alabama (uwca.org). United Way Hands On is the volunteer center for United Way of Central Alabama.