Giving back is at the heart of what we do at Taggstar. Every time we sign a new contract, it’s not just us that benefits but also charities and causes that our employees support, and there’s been a wide range.
We add an amount to our charity pot for every contract we sign. Through the charity committee that I have the pleasure of chairing, we then decide on charities to support, with everyone within the company able to suggest a cause they would like us to support.
Ideally, we prefer these to be smaller charities where our donations and our support can really have an impact. If the cause is personal to the team and/or we can get involved by volunteering, it’s even better.
Our support of the Kids Ark Foundation in Thailand https://www.kidsarkfoundation.org/about-us/ is the latest example of this. It was chosen by our lead engineer Stan Svec who has lived in Thailand for the past five years and has seen the work of the foundation first-hand.
The charity was founded in 2000 by Allan and Rita Holm Gustafsson, who had volunteered at a government orphanage in Chiang Mai, Northern Thailand. After establishing the Kids Ark Foundation, they began a Child Sponsorship Program with 53 children from the orphanage to arrange for these children to live with extended family while attending school.
The Kids Ark Foundation now offers three House of Hope after-school programs and a daycare centre that helps to promote early childhood education. In combination with child sponsorships, the foundation now serves almost 300 children.
Stan visited one of the centres with his girlfriend Ning, taking small cakes to break the ice with the children, who naturally tend to be very shy. They went down well. On the day of his visit, the children had just returned from school and were practising their English but they can also learn other subjects or play sports at the centres too.
He was touched by their enthusiasm to learn, as well as the knowledge that these children are in a safe environment whilst their parents are out at work. It moved him enough to nominate the Kid’s Ark Foundation to receive a donation from us. Taggstar donated $1,000, which, in Thailand, goes a long way. In fact, it will support two children for a whole year.
Stan and his girlfriend also personally sponsored two children for a year as well.
The Kid’s Ark Foundation is our latest charity cause, but we’ve also supported many other charities too – including Guy’s & St Thomas’ Hospital, Maggie’s Centres, London Fire Brigade, People’s Kitchen to the door’, Young Minds Matter to name a few.
