Annual Employee Giving Campaign Begins Oct. 7

Throughout the year on Fridays, members of the Internal Audits department deposit a minimum of $2 in a pink piggy bank when they wear jeans to work. 

At the end of each quarter, the team donates the money to a local charity supported by Duke's Doing Good in the Neighborhood campaign. Since January, Internal Audits has donated between $100 and $200 to Durham Literacy Council, Durham Rescue Mission and Durham's Partnership for Children. 

"This was a fun way to boost team morale by creating a greater reason for continuing a casual Friday tradition," said Rose Porges, administrative assistant for the team. "It helps us stay more connected to the community all year long."

In addition to saving money in a piggy bank, staff members in Internal Audits support the annual Doing Good in the Neighborhood campaign, organized by Duke's Office of Durham and Regional Affairs. For the past two years, the department has won prizes during the campaign for having nearly 100 percent participation. 

This year's Doing Good in the Neighborhood campaign runs Oct. 7 to Nov. 15. Faculty and staff can donate to any of the campaign's six categories: Schools, Youth, Neighborhoods, Health, Community Care Fund and United Way of the Greater Triangle.

"Doing Good in the Neighborhood provides options so that we, as Duke employees, can donate to the causes we care most about, even as we take part in a collective effort to make a difference in Durham and the region," said Phail Wynn, vice president for Durham and Regional Affairs. 

Last year, slightly more than 1,000 faculty and staff donated $614,200 to the campaign to support programs such as the Walltown Children's Theatre and Healthy Families Durham. 

While large donations are always welcome, Wynn said that every dollar makes a difference. A $10 donation each month, for example, covers the cost of one family's participation in Escuela de la Familia, a 14-week literacy and parenting program at the Durham Literacy Center. And a $20 one-time donation covers paperwork cost for Lincoln Community Health Center staff to secure public housing for a medically frail and homeless senior. 

Since Duke University pays all administrative fees, every dollar of every donation going to programs supported by Duke goes directly to local programs. United Way retains an administrative fee of 13 percent of each donation made to their program to cover administrative costs. 

The goal for the 2013 campaign is to continue to increase donations and overall participation. To encourage participation, the campaign will offer free lunch celebrations for staff and faculty in three departments with the highest percentage of employee participation. During the campaign, there will also be weekly raffles for participating employees as part of the Doing Good in the Neighborhood Giving Challenge.

For Porges, the administrative assistant in Internal Audit, emptying the piggy bank each Friday and calculating how much will go to charity is rewarding.

"It's a really fun way for us to stay aware of the difference we can each make in the community," she said.

For more information about the campaign, visit doinggood.duke.edu.