The second quarter of 2020 was like none most of us have ever seen. Over 90% of W&A’s employees started working remotely in mid-March, and that continued until mid-June as we adapted to the safety needs of COVID19. Despite these hurdles, W&A looked for opportunities to support local businesses and nonprofits hit hardest by the pandemic.
Efforts by CEO Jon Williams helped to establish the Entrepreneurial Community Bank Collective to create a smoother pipeline to the Payroll Protection Program loans for businesses struggling to access them. W&A also started “Take Out Tuesday” as a way to promote our favorite restaurants. We took a brief break from our 20th Anniversary Local Business Partnership and then resumed in June highlighting Krimson’s Kafe in Watkinsville and their nonprofit beneficiary Food2Kids, a program of the Food Bank of Northeast Georgia. In addition, the company pivoted from having its annual community BBQ to preparing and donating 500 lbs. of BBQ to six local nonprofits, involving a total of 150 volunteer hours.
Our collective efforts totaled 584 volunteer hours and $57,775 in donations over the second quarter, bringing the collective impact numbers that we began tracking in 2016 to an overall total of 7,677 volunteer hours served and $831,007 in donations. We are grateful for the opportunity to give back and help those in need. W&A remains committed to continuing to support the communities where we work and serve as we continue to forge our path across the southeast, making long-lasting community connections and pursuing our mission of building better communities.