'A day of volunteering gave a lot of connection in teams. This was talked about for months afterward. We also saw the scores in employee engagement go up because of this activity'
Ilse Heinsman, Head of Special Management at Rabobank NederlandSowonderful when volunteering brings about so much! Rabobank Nederland embraces volunteering. Over 200 employees of Rabobank Nederland (Special Management department) went to volunteer at various community organizations in Eindhoven during so-called 'Trade Days' in May.
Experiencing what it is like to be homeless in the city (and how you become homeless, the guides from Stichting Ervaring die staat tell us), to letting (lonely) elderly people from Vitalis WoonZorg Groep cuddle with animals again (because many used to have pets). Or rolling up their sleeves at the Stadsakkers (who grow free vegetables for Voedselbank Eindhoven (which more than 1,000 families use), the Eindhoven Museum and Stichting Ik wil. But children from Woensel-West also had an educational (and fun) afternoon thanks to Rabobank's efforts. WHAT impactful and social moments, beyond 'just' one day. Impressive. Heartwarming. Proud. Grateful'. Feedback from Rabobank giving an impression of the successful 2018 Rabobank Vakdagen:
'The opinions before the start of the day were divided, nobody knew exactly what to expect. After a warm welcome at 'Stichting Ik Wil' by the refugees, it only began to dawn on us how special this experience is. How far these kinds of people are normally from our daily lives, but how close it all takes place and above all how grateful we can be for the life we have. Engaging in one-on-one conversations with the refugees/newcomers had a great emotional impact on all of us. For some of us it was a throw back, for others a completely new experience but together we were able to make it a great success. This is definitely worth repeating and the energy we all got from it was incredible. It was in one word INDRUKWEKKKK'. (Amila Omerbasic - Rabobank)
'I would like to thank my colleagues and Samen voor Eindhoven for the fantastic Vakdagen! It was an honor to participate in the Streettour, really. It has been a real eye-opener and for me personally also a reason to become more actively involved in volunteering. What wonderful people. I never expected it to affect me so much. It has genuinely made me think'. (Natascha Hirsch - Rabobank)
'We were allowed to participate in the CSR activity 'The Mobile Animal Farm to the elderly'. With home-baked cake, our group of colleagues went to Wooninc Plus Vitalis Theresia, this is a small-scale complex of 140 apartments in Eindhoven, where the elderly can rent and purchase the care they need. There we were warmly welcomed and soon Roel's Beestenboel arrived and we could start building the mobile farm in the garden of Vitalis. The elderly could pet the animals but also sit among them. The residents were very enthusiastic and soon people were sitting with a rabbit or chicken on their laps. Because of the animals the conversations with each other started quickly. (Laura van Lanen - Rabobank)
'The Rabobank Professional Day began very appropriately with an emphasis on 'change'. The world around us is constantly evolving, and maybe we should try something new to evolve with it. We didn't often see participating in a CSR activity at our Special Management department. And what a great deal this new experience brought! We braved the sun with a group of 30 elderly people in wheelchairs. An afternoon getting out and then listening to a tearjerker choir. It is incredible to see how much effect such a small effort has. What started for us as an afternoon of walking and chatting quickly became, for the elderly, a day not to be forgotten. And for that very reason for us too! Inspiring' (Karin Hereijgers - Rabobank).
Also want to volunteer for a day (with your colleagues)? Through our volunteer calendar you can easily choose an activity at a time that suits you.
Photography Roel's Mobile Animal Farm at Vitalis: Nina Crebas. Photography streettour by former homeless people in Eindhoven: Frans Strous.
