Celebrating Service at Gilbane
At Gilbane Building Company, Building More Than Buildings is more than just a tagline – it encompasses the many ways Gilbane makes a difference: in the lives of our staff, in the economy, in the environment, and in our communities. Gilbane’s core values include caring and in recent years we expanded our safety program, Gilbane Cares, to include both physical and mental wellbeing. Gilbane Cares is a commitment each Gilbane employee makes every day to look out for each other. This commitment extends beyond our Gilbane family and into the communities in which we live and work.
Gilbane has a long history of community involvement. For instance, Bill Gilbane, Sr. served as Captain and chair of the 1956 United Way Campaign in Rhode Island, which raised over $2 million. Gilbane has continued working with United Way for the 66 years since. For six years, Tom Gilbane was the chairman of the ACE Mentor Program of America, a free, award-winning, afterschool program designed to attract high school students into pursuing careers in the Architecture, Construction and Engineering Industry, including skilled trades and continues to serve on its Executive Committee. Additionally, Gilbane employees regularly volunteer with Rebuilding Together, and countless local programs. Earlier this year, Gilbane announced an exciting new program, Volunteer Time Off (VTO), to further support our team members. The new program ensures every team member has the time and opportunity to pursue their passion for community service. We can’t wait to see how our Gilbane family uses this program to impact their communities.
Shining a Light on Sacramento
The Sacramento team is a great example of how Gilbane team members all over the world are impacting their local communities. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the team working on the 10th & O Street Office Building project collected donations for several Sacramento area food banks. They also joined other Sacramento employees to volunteer at the Yolo Food Bank. Every Friday for 11 months they served at a distribution site providing food to those experiencing food insecurity. Additionally, both the Pride Employee Resource Group (ERG) and the Asian Professionals in Construction (APIC) ERG donated to the Yolo Food Bank. During Construction Inclusion Week, the APIC ERG hosted a company-wide presentation with a Yolo Food Bank representative on the importance of volunteering at food banks. This week, some Sacramento employees are using their VTO to return to the Yolo Food Bank to serve during National Volunteer Week.
The Sacramento team is also passionate about investing in the next generation. Steve Harder, Project Manager, serves on the Board of Trustees of the Construction Industry Education Foundation (CIEF) which is a nonprofit associated with the Sacramento Regional Builders Exchange (SRBX), a professional organization for those in the A|E|C industry. CIEF hosts the Construction, Re-Development, Engineering, Architecture, Trades, Education (CREATE) Mentoring Program which educates and encourages high school students to pursue career pathways which create the built environment. Steve not only volunteered as a CREATE mentor, but won the Rookie of the Year Award in 2021 as a new mentor who went above and beyond in his role. Additionally, Steve serves on the SRBX Clay Shoot Committee. Other Sacramento staff members are also involved with SRBX. Chelsea Snyder, Project Engineer, serves on the Design-Build Advisory Board, the Social Events Committee, the Trades Day Committee, and volunteered at the SRBX Crab Feed. Several team members volunteered to host a booth at the SRBX Trades Day event. They enjoyed speaking with high school and college students about potential careers in the construction trades.
These are just a few highlights of how the Sacramento team serves their community, not just during National Volunteer Week, but throughout the year. Gilbane is proud to have many offices where employees are living out our core values and truly Building More Than Buildings.
