Do Good 2015: Scaling with Spirit...and Googly Eyes

Our annual Do Good tradition is…well...tradition. We get together to do good, spread joy and merriment, and be together. In the past, as a smaller organization, that was as easy as gathering in small teams to donate money to local causes. Now, as a larger organization, we wanted to find a celebration that held the same spirit but didn’t present as many logistical challenges. Thus, the 2015 version of Do Good was born.

First, we united behind a cause that we could personalize. We chose to give through Kiva because it is a platform with both a universal format and an abundance of compelling causes. Each employee received 25 dollars to donate to the cause that spoke to him/her. Some chose causes and people in Pakistan, Nigeria, Honduras, or the US. Some chose causes that were rooted in entrepreneurship, some in water safety/cleanliness, and some in good old-fashioned farm equipment. Check out our team page here.

Our Kiva activity made our do-gooding hearts soar from the comfort of our individual laptops, but now we wanted a way to come together, celebrate the season, and bond over our individual causes. We brought in baristas to set up hot chocolate and coffee stations in Chicago and SF offices. We set up ornament crafting stations in our offices, too, and sent supplies to our friends abroad so they could craft, too. Where did we buy said supplies? None other than Braintree merchant and friend, Jet.

So with our crafting stations and hot chocolate bars assembled, we celebrated the season, sipped on steamy beverages, and made ornaments that communicated our causes.

An important note: If you’re ever going to set up a crafting station, be sure that you have googly eyes. It doesn’t matter what the craft is, you’ll want to be sure you get yourself some googly eyes.

There was merriment aplenty. And we done good. We managed to celebrate the spirit of Do Good, and did so with hundreds of employees around the world.

Here are some snaps from our adventures:

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We hope you have a safe and happy 2016, and we look forward to doing good all year ‘round. With googly eyes, of course.

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Lindsay Verstegen Lindsay leads Recruiting + People Ops at Braintree–first figuring out what Braintree even was in 2012. Likes: bikes, photos, yoga, handwritten letters, and home-brewed kombucha. More posts by this author

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