Kaiser Permanente’s annual workplace community giving campaign is open Nov. 1 through Nov. 30. Pictured: Kaiser Permanente employees give to the community by volunteering at a Reading Partners event in Oakland.

Most stories are best told in words — but when it comes to giving, Kaiser Permanente has a compelling story to tell in numbers.

More than 12,000 Kaiser Permanente Northern California volunteers are registered on the region’s volunteer website, KPCares, and give thousands of hours each year volunteering in the community. This time of year the people of Kaiser Permanente also give generously through financial contributions to KPGives, the region’s annual workplace community giving campaign.

Last year Kaiser Permanente Northern California employees and physicians donated $1,970,904 to 2,715 different charities, and Kaiser Permanente provided an additional $500,000 in matching donations for a total gift of $2,470,904 to the community.

Benjamin Clyde, who organizes the annual KPGives campaign for Kaiser Permanente Northern California Community Relations, said the campaign results are proof positive that Kaiser Permanente believes in giving back.

“It shows that supporting the community is not just an organizational priority, but giving is also in the DNA of the people of KP.”

New Ways to Give and Track Donations

Starting Nov. 1, employees and physicians can visit kp.org/kpgives from work or home and make a financial pledge online. KP will match donations of the first 2,250 participants to sign up, up to $200. Donations can be made to any qualified nonprofit organization by giving through payroll deduction or a credit card.

This year there are several added features to make giving even easier:

• Web Single Sign-on (the same information you use to sign on to My HR) makes it easy to sign on to KPGives.
• Team giving offers the option to donate as a team or department.
• Year-round site access allows you to easily track your donations and payroll deductions.
• Extra giving opportunities will be available on Veterans Day, when employees and physicians can secure an extra $100 for the military organization of their choice, and Giving Tuesday, when the region will award a special gift to those who participate.
• Area recognition rewards the service area with the most new signups from Nov. 1 to Nov. 30 with a $5,000 contribution to its charity of choice.

Donations Make a Difference

If you have any doubt that giving makes a difference in the community, spend a few minutes with Michelle Torgerson, executive director for Reading Partners, San Francisco Bay Area, an organization that benefits from Kaiser Permanente volunteers and KPGives contributions. The Oakland-based national nonprofit works to close the literacy achievement gap for elementary school students by pairing community volunteers with struggling readers.

Torgerson said a $1,100 donation supports one student’s participation in the program for a full school year, while a $200 donation gives 40 students the chance to own a book and start building a small library at home.

“Reading Partners only exists through the support of the community,” Torgerson said. “No donation is too small, and we are grateful for every contribution we receive.”

Impressed by How Much Our People Care

Kaiser Permanente Public Affairs Representative Diana Croon White helps promote KPGives in the North Valley, and she donates to the campaign, too. Over the years she’s given often to the Girl Scouts, an organization she knows well as a former scout and longtime scout leader.

“I like giving through KPGives because it makes it easy to support the charity of my choice,” she said.

Croon White added that working on the campaign is a wonderful part of her job because she gets to see first-hand how much the people of Kaiser Permanente care.

“We have great doctors, nurses, and staff. I’m just impressed by how much our people care about their communities.”

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