WCCC Employees Share Thanks at Appreciation Buffet
Faculty shared in a day of thanks during the employee appreciation breakfast buffet held on Tuesday, November 24th at WCCC. For each card of thanks exchanged, a non-perishable item was donated to the student food bank.
Washington County Community College exemplifies an organization filled with individuals constantly striving to bring out the best in others. Even as those individuals meet with steady success in their efforts to empower their students and those around them, their daily endeavors can go unrecognized in the hustle and bustle of a busy campus.
With the season of giving thanks now upon us, the faculty of WCCC took it upon themselves to host a potluck breakfast buffet for staff and guests on Tuesday, November 24th. Event Organizer and WCCC Instructor, Rose Binda described the buffet as the perfect opportunity to “give some thanks for those daily kindnesses which we seemingly take for granted”. In addition to partaking in an array of homemade pastries, jams, spreads, and cider prepared by staff members, the event encouraged participants to fill out “Thank you” cards and leave them in the mailboxes of fellow employees.
The benefits of the event go well beyond sharing and receiving thanks. Each card that was filled out generated a box of nonperishable goods that will be donated to the student food bank on campus. Binda said that the event typically raises about $300, all of which is also donated to the WCCC student pantry.
This is the fourth year of the buffet, the impetus of which began when the employee Christmas and appreciation events were cancelled by the president of the college at the time. “I said, ‘No way!’ I guess that makes me Cindy Lou Who,” Binda said with a laugh, referring to the Dr. Seuss character with an indomitable holiday spirit. Binda got the idea from a friend of hers at the Kennedy School of Government in Massachusetts, who described it as a cheap and simple way to show appreciation and raise funds.
“This is a very giving community. I try to remind students of that all the time,” Binda said.
Commenting on the importance and value of the event, Academic Dean Alex Clifford added, “We deeply appreciate our faculty and the lives they are changing.”