Over 1,000 volunteers are rolling up their sleeves across Connecticut for Comcast Cares Day this year.
Photos: Comcast Cares Day
As part of the effort on Saturday, more than 200 local Comcast NBCUniversal employees brought their families, friends and community partners to Jumoke Academy in Hartford, where they spent hours giving the school a makeover.
NBC Connecticut employees joined the effort by gardening, landscaping and painting much of the school’s interior, including their cafeteria and library.
The school’s principal, Dr. Marie Gordon-Hall, said she wants her students to be proud of where they go to school.
“I can’t wait for them to come in on Monday so I can see their smiling faces when they see all the changes in the building,” said Dr. Gordon-Hall. “Our wonderful kids deserve a safe, beautiful space to learn in and I think after today they will get that.”
Comcast employee, Alayssia Pringle, was once a Jumoke Academy student herself. She said she is overwhelmed with gratitude, as she watched her co-workers and their families come together to make her former school a better place for its students.
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“I thought it’d be a great initiative for the scholars, especially because of the environment that they’re in, being in some of the underprivileged areas,” said Pringle. “I did not think we’d have this many people to help!”
The initiative is part of a company-wide tradition that’s in its 18th year. This year, over 100,000 volunteers participated in Comcast Cares Day nationwide.
“It goes back to Ralph Roberts who was the founder of Comcast,” said Brian Ferney, VP of Sales & Marketing at Comcast. “He really had a strong commitment that we want to serve the communities that we serve in.”
NBC Connecticut’s Kaitlyn McGrath couldn’t pass up the opportunity to give back, and even brought along her new fiancé to help out.
“We’re so proud to support this community and actually get out here hands-on,” said McGrath. “It’s one thing to deliver the news and the weather day in and day out, but to be here and to meet all of these new people and see our work come to fruition in front of our eyes is really special.”
