Running to Give…
Among the many things I will remember about my eight-week visit to Redmond, one of the most uplifting will be the sight of hundreds of Microsofties assembled together, running and walking for a cause bigger than themselves.
On a surprisingly beautiful Friday afternoon, more than 1,700 Microsoft employees gathered at the company’s main campus sports field in Redmond for a 5K run to raise money for local charities.
The event was part of the month long Microsoft Giving campaign that Akhtar wrote about last week. The campaign is an incredible reminder of the passion, ingenuity and generosity of our people in having a real impact on their local communities. Last year employees in the US alone raised more than $80 million. The 5k run is, in all probability, the single biggest of the 300 fundraising activities planned this year. The runners, walkers, volunteers and spectators also enjoyed music and entertainment provided by other employees, as well as the opportunity to meet with the nonprofits benefitting from the event.
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The money will go to three local nonprofit organizations: Boys and Girls Clubs of King County, Crohn's and Colitis Foundation of America and Summit Assistance Dogs.
Sabah Hamid
Sabah Hamid is the manager of corporate and citizenship PR in Microsoft India. Prior to joining Microsoft in 2007, she worked with a public relations agency on diverse technology and energy clients; and then a non-profit working in the area of sustainable development.
Sabah is currently spending a few weeks in Redmond (or the ‘mother ship’, as a Seattle airport official pointed out) as a career development exercise, and making extensive use of Bing Maps to find the correct bus numbers and go exploring in her free time.