With the holidays fast approaching, I thought I'd take a step back from the day-to-day craziness that is Silicon Valley and celebrate the joy of giving back to our communities.

I am always impressed to hear about the way so many of you spend your time away from work – whether it's volunteering to provide direct support to those in need, serving on a non-profit board, or mentoring a student – it's inspiring to me to see friends and colleagues devoting their talents to a good cause.

I'm also impressed with how generous so many of you are. The end of the year is a time when many non-profits reach out to supporters to help fund activities for the year to come and so it's a great time to be renewing your commitment to causes and organizations that you care about.

As the dad of a child with special needs, I'm proud to be a board member of Hope Services – the leading provider of services to people with developmental disabilities in the region.

I also focus time on my alma maters. As a graduate of Santa Clara University, as well as Santa Clara Law, I've made an effort to support student programs on campus in tandem with my Womble Carlyle colleague and Santa Clara alum Mike Gencarella.

Mike is a long-time supporter and participant in Santa Clara Law's High Tech Law Institute, as well as serving on the law school alumni board. I mentor law student participants in the Entrepreneurs Law Clinic, as well as participating in the "Bronco Network", which connects mentors to Santa Clara student athletes to provide guidance, information, and career counseling. It's very rewarding to be able to connect with students and provide perspective and hopefully some helpful suggestions about the path ahead.

I'd love to hear your thoughts about the joys of giving back.

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