Chesapeake continued its annual tradition of supporting the United Way with a robust employee giving campaign and corporate match. On October 28, 2021, the company announced that employees raised $825,000 to benefit the United Way of Central Oklahoma and other United Way chapters in our operating areas.
“Through our partnership with and support of the United Way, we give back and strengthen the areas where we operate,” said CEO Nick Dell’Osso. “Fundraising for the United Way allows us to pool our contributions to serve our communities’ greatest needs. It also highlights the generosity of our employees as they share their passion for the many organizations that benefit from United Way funding.”
The global pandemic continues to challenge the nonprofit community, forcing a demand for services and additional funding. The United Way and its partner agencies are particularly in need as they provide critical health and human services. Chesapeake’s annual giving campaign helps bridge this funding gap and enables the organizations to serve more of our neighbors.
Through a variety of activities taking place in Oklahoma City and our field offices, the company encouraged employee donations and matched these contributions to double their impact. At our corporate campus, employees participated in a “duck derby” fundraising event, bid for parking spaces and purchased raffle tickets. A cornhole tournament and cook-off also encouraged both competition and donations, emphasizing the “fun” in fundraising.
The Dell’Osso Challenge was a highlight of our annual RUN CHK race in Oklahoma City. Those runners who participated in the 5K run could bet — through a United Way pledge — that they would beat Dell’Osso’s run time. If they outran Dell’Osso, our CEO paid their pledge; however, if Dell’Osso’s time was faster, employees followed through on their pledges. Although we won’t publish Dell’Osso’s run time, we will confirm that he made a significant contribution to the campaign.
“During one of the hardest years in our organization’s history, we knew we could count on Chesapeake and its employees,” said Debby Hampton, United Way of Central Oklahoma President and CEO. “More so than ever before, we recognize that life is a gift and everyone has value. We thank Chesapeake and its employees for seeing our communities’ needs and giving so generously.”