Spirit of Community in Action

The generosity of our community is what makes Legacy a special place to be a part of. So many members from our corporate community played tremendous roles in reaching out to support a wide variety of special causes and events throughout the holiday season this past year.

Santa’s Helpers alone collected a record 2,311 toys in the fourth-annual drive-thru collections in Bishop Park benefiting the clients served by the Assistance Center of Collin County and the Plano Christmas Cops.

Cadbury Schweppes American Beverages
In addition, Cadbury Schweppes American Beverages (CSAB) partnered with the Santa’s Helpers toy drive by making a corporate donation of $20,000 to the foundation and CSAB colleagues collected more than 300 toys. CSAB colleagues also volunteered at the toy drop off events in Dallas and Plano, helping to collect toys and serving hot Dr Pepper to donors and volunteers. All told, Santa’s Helpers collected approximately 86,000 toys, with CSAB’s contributions comprising the bulk of the more than 2,000 toy increase over last year.

CSAB brands provided additional support to North Texas citizens, as the company responded to the North Texas Food Bank’s shortages by providing more than 1,500 coupons redeemable for free 12-packs of CSAB soft drinks.

CSAB also participated in its annual United Way campaign raising over $200,000 with its first “united” campaign coordinating with over 14 different locations and plants across the US and Canada. One of the highlights of the Plano office was employee’s participating in the Day of Caring* volunteer event at Samaritan Inn– the only homeless shelter in Collin County. Employees adopted family rooms, performed a variety of volunteer tasks and cooked up a batch of Dr Pepper chili for the residents. The Plano campaign ended in December with an educational book fair and a holiday bazaar featuring an array of diverse vendors, where employees could shop for holiday gifts.

EDS Credit Union
EDS Credit Union helped to make Christmas bright for children supported by Collin County Children's Advocacy Center. Generous contributions from members and Credit Union staff provided approximately 400 items valued at over $4000 to the Center's Rainbow Room. The Rainbow Room works closely with Child Protective Services providing supplies for children in need.

MetaSolv
MetaSolv continued their long-standing support of the Plano Christmas Cops Association. Beginning Dec 10th, they filled several boxes with new, unwrapped toys and clothes. Additionally, the Community Relations team hosted a social hour, which raised approximately $300 more to donate to the organization. The executives served meals on Friday, December 17th! They doubled as wait staff, complete with white towels and tuxes, as well as entertainers to serve refreshments for tips. All donations (tips) went to the Children’s Medical Centerin the amount of $632.11.

During the month of November ’04, several employees served doughnuts and coffee in the morning for a small donation. All proceeds went to the Samaritan Inn in McKinney. The Samaritan Inn is Collin County’s only emergency homeless shelter. They were able to raise $250 and donated several boxes of items on the Inn’s wish list.

MetaSolv sent an Angel Tree over to the Frisco Boys and Girls Club. They made 80 angels to hang on the tree with the children’s names and wish lists. Gifts were sent for all 80 children.

EDS
EDS employees generously supported the Visiting Nurses Association, Juliette Fowler Homes, Child Protective Services and Candlelight at Old City Park during the holiday season.

EDS volunteers delivered meals to seniors through the VNA’s Meals on Wheels program during the Thanksgiving Holiday. Employees also donated socks, toiletries and hand made afgans which were given to the VNA for delivery with meals throughout the holiday season.

Juliette Fowler Homes, which provides residential care for elderly adults and young people, received over 1,600 gifts, $400 in gift cards, 22 stockings for the teenagers and stocking stuffers for the seniors from EDS employees. Volunteers also helped distribute these gifts at the annual Juliette Fowler holiday party.

The Spirit of Christmas program, sponsored by Child Protective services, collects gifts for children in foster care. EDSers provided gifts to over 250 children this year, making their Christmas bright.

EDS volunteers supported Candlelight at Old City Park by serving as guides during this annual holiday event.

McAfee, Inc.
The McAfee, Inc. Plano office had a Thanksgiving Food Drive donating 892 pounds of food (canned goods, dried food, etc) to the North Texas Food Bank (www.ntxfoodbank.org). This donation supports the Food Bank's work to serve 400 Member Agencies in 13 North Texas counties.

The Holiday Family Partnership is another area where McAfee also made donations through the Assistance Center of Collin County (www.assistancecenter.org). Various departments in the Plano office partnered with needy families to provide much needed household items and holiday gifts. Donations included clothing, food, bedding and children's toys. The employees also donated additional toys directly to the Assistance Center for further distribution.

Plano Family YMCA
Plano Family YMCA members and staff sponsored an Angel Tree in which 200 "forgotten children" were delivered over 3 huge truckloads of toys and clothes.

They also sent over 325 handwritten Christmas cards to our military service men & women in the war who have been hospitalized overseas, away from their families and country throughout the holidays. Along with the cards, over 6 packing boxes of goodies such as coffee, socks, and hard candy were also sent overseas.

The YMCA staff sponsored a Plano family in financial need by sending 3 boxes of food and household products to the family.

Legacy Bank
During the 2004 holiday season, over 30 employees rang bells for the Salvation Army’s kettle drive at Collin Creek Mall. Additionally, Legacy Bank branches and internal departments collected nearly 12 full boxes of toys, canned goods, and blankets on behalf of the Plano and McKinney Police Departments, as well as the Salvation Army. Several coats were also collected for children at a McKinney elementary school.

The Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure, Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, CITY House, Salvation Army, March of Dimes, Muscular Dystrophy Association, Hope’s Door, and United Way of Collin County are just a few of the many charities that will benefit from the involvement of Legacy Bank and its employees in 2005.

Frito-Lay/PepsiCo
Frito-Lay and PepsiCo participated in a number of outreaches to the community in 2004. These included: toiletry drives and coat drives for local shelters and schools, Salvation Army Angel Tree, Thanksgiving food drive, collections for our troops, and United Way contributions in excess of two million dollars.