Company Employees Share the Love

Dallas, TX, February 02, 2012 --(PR.com)-- Many companies, small and large, are beginning to take corporate responsibility to their community seriously. Charitable giving not only counts as a tax break and public relations boost, but as a way to enrich the lives of customers and neighbors. Unlike other companies, however, Lancaster-based Access Self Storage is placing corporate benevolence in the hands of its employees – literally.

The on-site managers at each of Access' six Dallas-Fort Worth locations were given $100 in addition to their bonuses this Christmas to use as they saw fit, the only stipulation being that the money be given to someone in need. “We wanted our managers to feel what it's like to make a difference in someone else's life,” says company owner Doug Hunt. “We've been very blessed by these communities and it's our job to pass that along.”

The managers were given carte blanche over the money, allowing them to identify needs in their own customer base and community. The Lancaster facility helped one of their elderly customers with groceries for the month. The Red Oak facility chose to bless a single mother from a neighboring apartment complex who had just spent her last dime securing a home for her and her son. The managers of the Pleasant Grove facility purchased food and temporary lodging for a homeless gentleman in their community and, due to the generosity of the hotel's staff, had enough left over to purchase food for a down-on-her-luck tenant as well. A mother of two and a tenant of Access' Oak Cliff facility was shocked to receive coats and shoes for her daughters courtesy of the facility's managers. Medical bills from the youngest daughter's ongoing health problems had prevented the family from purchasing even the most basic of necessities.

Perhaps most striking is the kindness and generosity of Access' Garland facility. After losing his job and subsequently his savings and house, one young husband, a tenant at the facility, faced his worse nightmare – a wife and newborn baby without a home, food, or the means to repair a hairlip and cleft palate in his child. Unable to secure food stamps or medicaid without a permanent address, the small family was without hope. Access' managers found a home for their tenants, paid the deposit and first month's rent, and provided enough food for the family to get by. Funds in excess of the company-provided $100 donation came out of the managers' own pockets.

“We were blown away by what they did,” grins Hunt. “We are unbelievably proud to have employees who share our passion for helping others. They went above and beyond.”

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