Volunteer Spotlight: Lyndsy Jorden
This month we sat down with Lyndsy Jorden, who manages a monthly volunteer session for a group of Design Laboratory associates. The group has been volunteering regularly since 2011, and have grown their role over the years to support our mission in many ways, from sponsoring Food Frenzy to helping with Stamp Out Hunger donations at the Bellevue Post Office. Most recently, they jumped in to help with our diaper and formula drives during the government shutdown. We’re so grateful to Lyndsy and the entire Design Laboratory team for their incredible support over the years!
Lyndsey Jorden, the Director of Human Resources for Seattle-based professional consulting firm Design Laboratory, brings a group of associates every month to volunteer at Food Lifeline.
Last month, as the government shutdown started and food banks across the region were scrambling to meet the increased need, Lyndsey Jordan got a call at 8:00 Friday night. Food Lifeline was starting diaper and formula drives at local grocery stores, and needed some volunteers to help at the Bellevue location. Lyndsey sprung into action, finding 7 friends to come volunteer the next morning.
Saturday morning, the group quickly took charge, loading the truck and asking customers going into the store to buy some diapers or formula to donate on their way out. Volunteer support was critical to the campaign success and helped bring in hundreds of packages of diapers and formula for families impacted by the government shutdown.
The diaper and formula drives are just the latest way Design Laboratories has championed Food Lifeline’s mission. With the support of President & CEO Tina Knutson, Design Labs has supported Food Lifeline in a number of different initiatives over the years, from participating in Stamp Out Hunger to sponsoring and attending Dress Down Hunger. They have also participated in the Meals for Minds program, which provides healthy food for schoolchildren at risk of hunger. A longtime sponsor of our summer fundraising campaign, Food Frenzy, they competed themselves this past year. They had a lot of fun, holding a cutest pet contest, a food drive in the office, and an online food drive.
Each initiative they support makes a real impact in our mission to provide immediate food for our neighbors across Western Washington.
At their volunteer session every month, the team enjoys hearing how many pounds they’ve processed, but even more impactful is knowing that the food will be going out into community immediately.
“The biggest thing is just knowing that the food that we are packing is going to be eaten that week.”
Since many employees work remotely, the volunteer sessions are a way for employees to get to know each other. Lyndsy loves that the volunteer sessions provide a way for colleagues to connect, as well as serving as an opportunity to try something that they might not have done before.
“It’s only two hours out of your day,” says Lyndsy. “But you’re making a huge impact.”
Each month the group anticipates the session and speculates about what they’re going to for that day – Squash? Tea? Pasta?
And they make the sorting process fun by having a competition to see who can get their scale to weigh out on the exact poundage on the first scoop, and when that happens everyone cheers.
Knowing they’re making a difference has kept the team enthusiastic, even 13 years on.
“Walking away, knowing that we did something for others is good,” says Lyndsey. “And it’s always fun and well organized,” she adds.
“It just makes me so fulfilled to know that I’m doing something more than me.”
