Coming Together to Give Back
By Aaron Saenz, Network Maintenance Supervisor for Comcast Cable
I first joined Comcast 21 years ago as a cable technician, right out of high school, and the pace of change since then has been rapid, especially in the last several years. But what hasn’t changed are the hearts of the people I work with every day, and that was reinforced for me again in the last few weeks.
Today I am honored to share that Comcast NBCUniversal set a new record with nearly $11 million raised through our annual Employee Giving Campaign in support of United Way. More than $8 million came from pledges made by individual employees, most who stepped up to divert a portion of every paycheck next year to help people in need. Combined with more than $2 million in matching grants from the Comcast Foundation, we have crossed the $88 million mark in historic support to United Way affiliates in communities nationwide, and thousands of local nonprofit organizations that make our communities stronger.
Let me share what all this means to me: one dollar at a time, we are helping someone get a second chance at life. Six years ago, that someone was me.
For years, I had experienced acute renal failure. Then, one day in 2010, my kidney stopped working. The doctors told me that a living donor was my best option, and I was lucky to find one in my wife. Together, we endured several months of testing – and a harrowing surgery for my wife – all while raising our two young children.
Along the way, we reached out for assistance and guidance to the local chapter of the National Kidney Foundation, which I support each year through our Employee Giving Campaign. The Foundation offered some financial support to help cover prescription costs and co-pays for our doctor visits. I never thought I'd be in that situation where I had someone giving me money from a foundation, but you just never know.
I had the chance last month to share my experience during our Employee Giving Campaign through a companywide video. The video showed employees that they don’t have to look far to understand the difference they can make by supporting our campaign.
It wasn’t an easy decision to get so personal in front of my team here in Kemah, Texas, or thousands of other colleagues whom I’ve never met. But I have no doubt it was the right decision and I’m grateful to work for a company where we are all paying it forward.
This article first appeared on Comcast Voices, a place for conversations with Comcast. Read more blogs about our impact in the community here.
