Tag: volunteering

Reinhart Guest House Visit 2019

Posted on by Melissa Silver
Left to Right, Top to Bottom: Ashley, Vivia, Brenna, Taylor, Shaila and James
Our Build-Your-Own Breakfast Sandwich Bar
Astyra hosted a staff volunteering day at the Bon Secours’ Evelyn D. Reinhart Guest House in April!
 
The Reinhart House provides lodging for families of patients in the hospital for an extended period. Throughout their stay, various volunteers offer to come and cook a meal for the families to help ease some of their stress.
 
Astyra has volunteered every year for the Reinhart House since 2014! Prior to this, our last visit was in August 2018. This time, the Astyra volunteer group decided to have a Build-Your-Own breakfast sandwich bar complete with various breads, meats and toppings.
 
This was Ashley and Shaila’s first time ever participating in a group volunteer experience with Astyra. Both ladies offered to help with everything including baking bacon, slicing avocados and washing dishes.
 
Ashley said she is excited for our next volunteering event!

Share this post:

COMMENTS

What’s on your mind?

LATEST STORIES

National Kidney Foundation

Posted on by Melissa Silver
Volunteers at the For Your Heart Women's Expo
The National Kidney Foundation hosted their annual For Your Heart Women’s Expo in February. 
 
Our Recruiting Assistant, Jody joined with other volunteers to help the organization hand out surveys. The questionnaires assess attendants health and offer advice on how to promote healthier lifestyle decisions.
 
What non-profit missions do you support?

Share this post:

COMMENTS

What’s on your mind?

LATEST STORIES

Preventing Substance Abuse

Posted on by Melissa Silver
Henrico Too Smart 2 Start (HTS2S) appointed our Operations Admin Executive Assistant, Tianna as their Volunteer Social Media Coordinator. With this position, Tianna will lead the communications team in creating a social media plan, assist with community events and design graphics.
 
The coalition focuses on reducing and preventing substance abuse in the Henrico youth population through education and advocacy. In addition to hosting informational events for parents, the organization also tailors events to youth such as a poetry slam with a theme related to the HTS2S mission.
 
Tianna is excited to help and cannot wait to see how the organization grows and develops throughout her time with them. Her first board and general body meeting is coming up next month!

Share this post:

COMMENTS

What’s on your mind?

LATEST STORIES

Petersburg Fall Fix-Up Day 2018

Posted on by Melissa Silver
Pam from RTR and Tianna

Our Operations Admin and Executive Assistant, Tianna volunteered with Rebuilding Together Richmond (RTR) one rainy Saturday this month.

The organization hosted their third annual “Fall Fix-Up Day” in Petersburg to help repair over ten homes and community spaces and clean up trash around the area. This day is similar to RTR’s “National Rebuilding Day,” which is a full day of home repairs and community revitalization in the Spring. 

Tianna acted as their Communications Specialist by managing their social media platforms. She spent the day taking pictures and videos, creating posts and interviewing volunteers and homeowners on the event.

Share this post:

COMMENTS

What’s on your mind?

LATEST STORIES

August 2018 Is The Month Of Giving!

Posted on by Melissa Silver
Carmen posing with eggs
Vivia, Melissa, Carmen, Tianna, Ken and Taylor
Jody, Melissa, Tianna, Brenna and Carmen
Carmen at the YMCA Bright Beginnings Program
Cutting bagels, organizing donations and greeting everybody with a smile was the job of six Astyra employees on an early Tuesday morning.
 
At Shepherd’s Way Relief Center, Astyra helped prepare and serve breakfast to 133 people in need.  Sigmund Collins founded the center in 2012 to provide relief from the afflictions of poverty in the Richmond area.
 
That morning, the kitchen manager Richard Lepper, showed up at 6:30 to make seven pounds of grits and about 25 dozen eggs. At 8:30 a.m., Astyra volunteers arrived not knowing what to expect but excited to work and help out in the community.
 
On one side of the kitchen, Carmen handed out hard-boiled eggs while Tianna passed out a variety of bagels. Our CEO, Ken, got an intense arm workout from scooping the crowd’s favorite: cheesy grits drenched in butter.
 
Just past the serving table, Melissa sweetened everybody’s day by giving them sugar packets for their coffee. Vivia helped flavor the bagels by providing jelly, cream cheese and butter. Lastly, Taylor was in charge of ensuring everybody had the utensils they needed to enjoy their hot meal.
 
Astyra also had an office drive the month before that led to three large bags of clothes, jewelry, shoes and a box full of canned foods and toiletries being donated to Shepherd’s Way Relief Center.
 
Later in the month, six Astyra employees participated in another staff volunteering day at Bon Secours’ Evelyn D. Reinhart Guest House.
 
The Reinhart House is a place for patients’ families to stay as opposed to driving far distances to and from the hospital. As a way to support the families, the lodge allows volunteers to come and cook a meal for the residents.
 
Astyra has been a long-time volunteer for the Reinhart House, which made it easy to prepare for the day. The Astyra volunteers made vegetable breakfast casserole muffins, home fries, bacon and biscuits.
 
Melissa multi-tasked between supervising and frying the home fries. Carmen and Jody focused on cutting the onions and tomatoes while Tianna whisked the eggs. Brenna was on bacon duty ensuring they were just the right amount of crispy. Our CEO, Ken, baked the biscuits to a golden brown.
 
The breakfast turned out to be a hit!
 

“The breakfast flew out of here – loved by everyone,” said Elisabeth Rigsby, house assistant.

Carmen was a superstar this month!

In addition to attending our volunteering days, she also volunteered with the YMCA’s Bright Beginnings program to take a child back-to-school shopping just like Victor did earlier this month!

“As a 1st time participant in the YMCA Bright Beginnings program, being able to help kids feel good about themselves in school and beyond was rewarding. It reminded me of how incredibly blessed I am, and that encourages me to want to give back even more,” Carmen said.

She plans on helping out with this program again next summer!

Share this post:

COMMENTS

What’s on your mind?

LATEST STORIES

Back To School Program

Posted on by Melissa Silver
Victor at the YMCA Bright Beginnings Program

Technical Recruiter, Victor Rogers participated in the YMCA Bright Beginnings program one evening in August.

The program matches children with a Shopping Buddy for one day to buy clothes and enjoy a meal together to prepare for school. Throughout their time together, the volunteer also offers advice and gives the child a positive outlook on the upcoming school year.

Victor paired up with a 2nd grader and they bought two new outfits before the start of his buddy’s new school year.

Share this post:

COMMENTS

What’s on your mind?

LATEST STORIES

Astyra Visits The Reinhart Guest House

Posted on by Melissa Silver
Ken Ampy is on the St. Mary’s community foundation board and has volunteered to make meals at the Reinhart Guest House 4 times. 
Ken’s passion for the community has resulted in Astyra staff getting involved too. 
We made dinner for the guests at the start of the year, and decided to return again on December 16, 2015. 
 
Astyra’s office opened a little late that day as we spent the morning preparing breakfast for the guests staying at the house. 
We made “make-your-own” breakfast burritos for the guests!
 
There are many ways you can get involved. To learn more about volunteer opportunities at the guest house, click here.  

Share this post:

COMMENTS

What’s on your mind?

LATEST STORIES