For Earth Month this year, Sr. Sustainability Director Sarah Rege and Sustainability Manager Kavita Karmarkar organized regional volunteer events combatting two critical environmental issues: food insecurity and pollution. NorCal Webcorians packaged food at SF-Marin Food Bank in San Francisco, and SoCal Webcorians beautified the trails surrounding Los Angeles’s famous Griffith Park.
SF-Marin Food Bank After two years of hosting NorCal’s Earth Month events in the East Bay, Sarah and Kavita decided to plan this year’s event closer to the San Francisco King Street office. They eventually settled on the SF-Marin Food Bank, an essential resource for more than 53,000 households battling food insecurity in San Francisco and Marin.
Although not directly related, sustainability and food insecurity intersect in major ways, Kavita says.
“Sustainable water and soil management drive the long-term stability of agriculture and food production systems,” she explains. “Additionally, extreme weather events (climate change) and increased carbon emissions (burning fossil fuels) harm agricultural patterns, crop yields, etc.” Disadvantaged areas suffer these consequences the most, compounding the severity of food insecurity within already vulnerable populations.
On April 4, six Webcorians and two SFO West Field Garage JV team members from Austin Commercial packaged 13 pallets of food boxes for senior citizens living on fixed incomes.
Seeing all the boxes they’d packaged in just two hours and realizing their work would help so many meet their weekly grocery needs was a powerful moment, Kavita says. Although physically tiring, their shift flew by as they sang along to the ‘70s music blasting through the warehouse, laughed together, and connected while supporting a vital community cause.
“Aside from the community, physical, and mental health benefits of volunteering (as discussed in a recent WELL-Informed newsletter), volunteer events are a great opportunity to meet colleagues you might never have otherwise,” Kavita says. “I had the pleasure of meeting team members from the SFO West Field Garage for the first time, including our partners at Austin Commercial.”
“Being involved with the community brings more awareness and empathy for others in our area,” Sarah adds. “It was shocking to hear how many people and families rely on the food bank for groceries!”
Project Engineer Avery Girard enjoyed volunteering so much that she’s organized a future community service day at the food bank for the entire SFO West Field Garage JV team. She’s excited for another opportunity to bond with her teammates while giving back to the community in which they all work.
“When you volunteer, you see firsthand just how much our community needs support,” she says. “Helping out as a company strengthens both our team and the people we serve. It’s an experience that fosters deeper connections and a sense of purpose that extends beyond the workplace.”
Cleaning Griffith Park’s Trails Down south in Los Angeles, Webcorians gathered at Griffith Park to pick up trash along the trails and throughout the open space surrounding the former Los Angeles Zoo.
For born-and-bred Los Angelenos such as Marketing Specialist Max Swerdlick, this year’s SoCal Earth Month event was a perfect chance to beautify an iconic LA landmark beloved by residents and tourists alike.
“I spend a lot of time in LA’s mountains, beaches, and parks,” Max says. “I pick up trash when I can, but my impact is minimal. Cleaning an entire section of Griffith Park—one of my favorites in the city—with my colleagues was a joyful and rewarding experience.”
Project Engineer Ricky Rosales was similarly drawn to this year’s Earth Month activity by his LA roots:
“Simply put, I love my city.”
Griffith Park’s 4,200 acres offered plenty of space for volunteers to spread out and cover as much ground as possible.
Nearly 15 Webcorians from IT, Project Controls, the LAX Wayfnding Enhancement Project (WEP), Design Management, Business Development, and Marketing joined Kavita and Sarah for a morning of outdoor litter clean-up.
Prepared with gloves, trash-grabbers, and plenty of trash bags, Webcorians spent two hours picking up trash and non-organic items. By noon, they’d collected nearly 45 pounds of waste that had been strewn throughout the park and its trails.
“Seeing the area of the park we’d cleaned was a beautiful sight,” Max says. “We had a great time playfully comparing the trash items we’d accumulated throughout the morning. The joy and fulfillment we collectively exuded was palpable, and I loved seeing our team’s filled bags at the end of the day.”
Ricky also enjoyed seeing so many Webcorians across departments come together on a workday to serve their community—a Webcor core value particularly close to his heart.
“We have the privilege of coding 20 hours of community service each year, so what’s stopping us all from making an impact?” he says. “Regardless of how small it may seem to clean up some debris, pack a meal kit, or distribute supplies to those in need, these volunteer activities give us the chance to physically represent a community that cares—what’s bolder than that?”
