SPIE Community Support Within Whatcom County
SPIE prioritizes and cultivates good relationships with our community colleagues and partners. We appreciate contributing to a better quality of life across Whatcom County.
In 2019, SPIE sponsored the month of July for the Bellingham Food Bank’s Food4Tots program, donating $1,466 and 116 items.
Every August, SPIE holds a Backpack Drive to support the Whatcom County Opportunity Council’s annual drive, collecting backpacks, USB drives, and other school supplies.
Our annual Fall Food Drive brings out SPIE’s in-house competitiveness! From generous raffles of local and regional goodies, to our Thanksgiving Soup parties – when employees donate money for samples of various turkey soups – in recent years, SPIE has donated more than 4,000 in items or dollars to the Bellingham Food Bank.
SPIE donates clean and gently used professional business attire to the Bellingham YWCA and Hope House, two organizations that provide professional attire to low-income individuals seeking employment.
SPIE participates in the United Way Campaign each year, offering employees the opportunity to contribute via payroll deductions.
The SPIE team helps fight arthritis by participating in the annual Jingle Bell Run. Throughout the year, we facilitate fundraising activities such as silent auctions, crockpot potlucks, and Corgi-Paloozas, where SPIE employees donate money for the opportunity to play, pet, or feed impossibly cute Corgis for 15 minutes.
Every year, SPIE sponsors families through the Interfaith Coalition for the Holiday Family program. Not only do we purchase gifts for these families, we also supply $1,200 in gift cards for businesses such as Fred Meyer, Walmart, Supercuts, Regal Cinemas, Little Caesars and Subway, for Interfaith to distribute to other families throughout the year.
STEM activities around Whatcom County
SPIE staff love to volunteer at the SPIE-led STEM activities that take place throughout the year. From super-cool laser shows and exciting science fairs at our local schools, to engaging panels and other events at Western Washington University, SPIE prides itself on engaging with our Whatcom community by sharing expertise, knowledge, excitement, and passion for all things optics and photonics.
Good Corporate Citizens Committee
SPIE seeks to be a responsible and positive contributor to the community in which we are located and from which we draw many of our employees. In 2002, SPIE started a fund specifically to support local charities in order to serve that goal. A staff committee was formed to evaluate proposals and allocate available monies. Between 2017 and 2019 SPIE has provided $70,000 to the community through this program.
