Teamwork takes a new meaning when there is a social dimension to it. Collaboration, care and altruism are the common characteristics running through a number of philanthropic initiatives that were undertaken by different teams across Bank of Valletta over the past months.
Team members of the Bank's Payment Operations Unit supported the Soup Kitchen in Valletta during the festive season. They designed a reverse calendar where participants set aside a daily contribution, and shared progress with other team members, resulting in a snowballing effect with other units chipping in along the way. Before long, all employees deployed at BOV Wignacourt Centre in Santa Venera were involved, resulting in a much-needed donation. The result was beyond anything that the original group had envisaged. When Father Marcellino from the Soup Kitchen visited BOV Wignacourt Centre, he was met with several boxes of food items, and a monetary donation on top of that.
Another initiative with a difference was undertaken by employees deployed within the Bank's Treasury and Stockbroking & Capital Advisory Unit. This group swapped their office attire for used clothes, and their keyboard for paintbrushes, to redecorate rooms at Fondazzjoni Sebħ's Villa Ambrosa Home in Ħamrun. This Home provides shelter and offers a safe and loving home environment to 23 children, aged between 8 months and 18 years, who need an out-of-home care placement and an environment that will assist them in reaching their full potential. The team whitewashed the reception area, therapy and counselling room, transforming them completely with the use of vibrant wall colours. Everyone handled different jobs, including taking care of lunches and coffee breaks, but the end result was a feeling of great satisfaction for all involved.
Other initiatives with a philanthropic goal were undertaken across the Bank, for instance, by the team at CSC, BOV Asset Management and more recently by all the teams within BOV Premier Centre in Santa Venera.
Speaking about these initiatives, Kenneth Farrugia, the Bank's Chief Executive Officer, commended the teams who took such initiatives. "We are a service organisation where our people are intrinsically linked to the delivery of service excellence, and are also responsible for making a positive contribution to society. With our fifty-year legacy of operations in Malta and Gozo, we have roots running deep in the communities that we service. So it fills me with great pride to see our people teaming up from across the organisation to lend a hand where it matters most. These are just two instances where our people took the initiative and truly made a difference and is characteristic of the values that have always been imprinted in our DNA and are an integral part of our culture, serving as an example for other organisations to follow."
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