Girls Inc. and Morrison Healthcare Partner for an Afternoon of Service
Here at Morrison when we work in a community, service is a responsibility we take seriously. Supporting non-profits and social outreach organizations through donations and community service hours is ingrained in our culture. We understand our impact reaches far beyond the walls of the hospitals, businesses, schools, and universities we serve.
Last month, we were given the opportunity to volunteer with Girls Inc. alongside other sectors in our Compass Group USA family including, Morrison Community Living (MCL), TouchPoint Support Services (TouchPoint), and Bateman Community Living. Girls Inc. is an organization that focuses on developing research-based informal education programs that encourage girls to take risks and master physical, intellectual and emotional challenges.
Each summer, Girls Inc. hosts its Summer University, a six-week program that encourages girls to pursue higher education, set goals and explore. Each week participants explore a different “major,” providing them with a taste test for future career opportunities. For the program’s second week, the girls focused on Compass-supported curriculum based on Service and Hospitality.
After the volunteer teams arrived and set up at the Girls Inc. located in Marietta, Georgia, the gym quickly filled with the sound of chatter and laughter from more than 50 young girls.
Throughout the remainder of the afternoon, the girls who ranged in age from five to twelve, rotated from station to station learning the importance of workplace safety, personal branding, and customer service. At the final learning station, Morrison Healthcare Chef Tonya Brown and Morrison Community Living Chef Todd Clements showed the girls how to make their very own Berries & Yogurt Devonshire Cream Parfaits. Using Rich’s Products at the Teaching Kitchen, the girls built delicious and nutritious desserts. Each girl took home a Rich’s tote filled with fruit they “purchased” from the mock supermarket station earlier in the day and parfait recipe cards from the branding station so they could re-create the recipe at home.
Andrea Woods, Vice President of Performance Excellence for MCL and TouchPoint, is a strong supporter of Girls Inc. Andrea’s interest in Girls Inc. ignited because of their mission to empower young girls to be strong, smart and bold. “While there are many organizations that empower girls, I could see the results from Girls Inc., and felt their focus on STEM [Science, Technology, Engineering, Math] programming was critical for the next generation of girls that look like me, come from similar environments as me, and are faced with some of the same challenges I faced growing up,” Andrea says. She also has hopes that Compass will continue their cross-sector community service support of Girls Inc., so the program’s strong, smart and bold girls can bring their STEM skills to the hospitality industry.
No doubt these kinds of experiences are invaluable for young minds. Director of Center Programs, Michelle Graves, said after the cooking demonstrations, “I spoke to a girl on her way out and she said to me, ‘I want to be a chef when I grow up and today I got to meet one! I got to see what they did and now I have my first recipe!’ It’s really important that the girls see role models [who] are in the careers [we learn] about throughout the week.”
At Compass USA sectors like Morrison, we take pride in our work but not just in the kitchen as a chef, café as a cashier, or patient room as a catering associate. We embrace our responsibility for community service and to empower members of the communities in which we serve. If your current job prevents you from being an active participant in your community or discourages community service programs, learn more about working with us. Check out available team member or management opportunities to join the Morrison family.
The Girls Inc. movement started in New England during the Industrial Revolution as a response to the needs of a new working class. The organization inspires all girls to be strong, smart, and bold through direct service and advocacy. Their comprehensive approach to whole girl development equips girls to navigate gender, economic, and social barriers and grow up healthy, educated, and independent. If you would like to learn more about how to volunteer with Girls Inc. or make a donation to the organization, please visit their website.
