Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits (Southern Glazer’s)—the world’s preeminent distributor of beverage alcohol—today announced the recipient of its inaugural VolunCheer of the Year Award, to whom Southern Glazer’s is presenting a certificate of recognition and check in the amount of $5,000 to their charity of choice, enabling the winner to make an even greater difference in the community. VolunCheers is Southern Glazer’s national employee volunteer program that encourages people across the Company’s North American footprint to make a positive impact in the communities they live and work.
Southern Glazer’s called on all employees to vote among last year’s VolunCheer of the Month winners to select one recipient of the VolunCheer of the Year Award. The VolunCheer of the Month program launched at the start of 2019, focused on recognizing employees who leverage Southern Glazer’s enterprise-wide employee volunteering and giving portal, VolunCheers Online, to promote and drive employee participation at their volunteer events.
After a tight race, John Berry, Regional Administrator from Southern Glazer’s Louisiana, received the most votes, earning the inaugural VolunCheer of the Year title. Berry chose The Arc of Greater New Orleans (ArcGNO) to receive the $5,000 donation on his behalf. The organization is committed to securing opportunities for people with intellectual disabilities to develop, function, and live to their fullest potential.
“None of us choose to be born a particular way with certain characteristics and traits, nor did the clients of ArcGNO choose to be born as they were,” said Berry. “It is incumbent upon us all as human beings to do whatever we can to help one another. ArcGNO touches so many lives every day, and volunteering our time or resources is a way for us all to touch others as well.”
Berry received the September VolunCheer of the Month title for a volunteer event he organized for two teams of 25 to 30 colleagues benefiting ArcGNO.
“Giving back to the communities in which we live and work is paramount to us as a Company,” said Wayne E. Chaplin, Chief Executive Officer, Southern Glazer’s. “Our employees, who are leading positive change in their communities, enable us to make a greater impact in a meaningful way. We’re thrilled to be able to recognize their hard work through the VolunCheers program.”
From beach cleanups, to food drives, mentoring sessions, and house builds, Southern Glazer’s employees came together month after month to give back to their communities and logged more than 17,0000 volunteer hours in 2019.
