An Industry of Giving

By Holly Wetzel, VP of Communications, American Gaming Association

Did you know that commercial gaming industry employees contribute nearly 300,000 volunteer hours a year? That data comes from a new report on industry giving and volunteering coming soon from the American Gaming Association, and I think it’s a pretty impressive figure. According to the report, in 2012 more than 36,000 industry employees participated in volunteer events that served more than 2,000 organizations.

The AGA conducted the survey of industry philanthropic contributions as part of its annual “All In” campaign to highlight the corporate social responsibility efforts of the commercial gaming industry. The full report will be released next week during National Volunteer Week, and gaming employees across the country will be participating in a host of volunteer activities to help their communities.

Here’s just a taste of what’s planned for next week:

·      Aristocrat Technologies has several staff volunteer events planned next week in Las Vegas, including building wooden toys for Toys4Smiles, assembling food and toiletry bags for seniors at Helping Hands, and organizing rooms and helping with spring cleaning at Street Teens.

Every Ameristar casino across the country will be hosting volunteer activities for employees. Examples include Ameristar Black Hawk, where employees will help put on the 2013 Craig Hospital Bowling Tournament. The corporate office in Las Vegas will help run an eyeglass donation drive in conjunction with the local Lion’s Club.

Isle of Capri properties also are getting in on the volunteer action. Isle of Capri Lake Charles employees will help build houses with Habitat for Humanity and host a resident birthday party at the local Gardens Assisted Living Center, among other activities.

Isle of Capri Boonville has big plans as well. Examples of planned activities include food prep at the Food Bank for Central and Northeast Missouri, and cleaning, general maintenance and storm cleanup at Columbia Second Chance.

MGM Resorts International employees in Las Vegas will be working at the Desert Wildlife Refuge to plant native trees, flowers and perform grounds cleanup.

In addition to these activities, the AGA will use National Volunteer Week to celebrate some of the most outstanding employee volunteers throughout the national gaming industry. Companies throughout the industry nominated Employee Volunteer All Stars, and the stories of our winners and finalists will be featured in a special section of the AGA website. I encourage you to check out their inspiring stories next week at www.americangaming.org.  Take some time this month to learn more about your own company’s volunteer programs, and think about how you can get involved. The gaming industry truly is an industry of giving – when we all work together, the impact we can make is truly noteworthy.