A Way of Life Generates Record Giving in 2003

Adobe's long history of philanthropy and volunteerism began with its employees. Their grassroots efforts inspired executive support in the 1980s that led to the launch of formal community relations programs in the 1990s, and their efforts continue to grow, inspiring Adobe's corporate charitable initiatives worldwide.

In 2003, Adobe employees participated in more than 80 company-sponsored community events and performed countless individual acts of volunteerism and charitable giving. During Adobe's annual Community Involvement Month—a 15-year October tradition—and at holiday time, employees are especially active. What follows is a sampling of some of the many ways in which Adobe volunteers got involved in 2003.

For the first time, Adobe San Jose participated in the Adopt-A-Family program of Cupertino Community Services (CCS), which has been providing food, shelter, and financial assistance in the West Valley area for more than 30 years. During the holiday season, Adopt-A-Family matches families in need with teams of corporate employees, who shop for gifts from submitted "wish lists." More than 155 Adobe headquarters employees formed 15 teams, providing gifts for 17 families, including 24 adults and 49 children.

In similar fashion, Adobe Ottawa employees selected tags from a Holiday Giving Tree to buy toys, books, and other gifts for children of low-income families belonging to the Vanier Community Service Centre. More than 100 children received presents through their generosity.

The annual Holiday Food Drive conducted by the Second Harvest Food Bank of Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties is the largest in the United States. Participation has been an Adobe San Jose tradition since 1988, and Adobe President and CEO Bruce Chizen chaired the event in 2001. Adobe employee donations of $32,940.60 and 1,479 pounds of food during the 2003 Holiday Food Drive will help provide food assistance to an average of 165,000 people each month throughout 2004.

In the aftermath of the largest wildfire in California history, Adobe San Diego employees expressed their compassion and concern by donating canned and packaged groceries to the Holiday Food Drive for the San Diego Food Bank. The San Diego Philanthropy Council donated US$5,000 to the wildfire relief fund, co-sponsored by the Food Bank and the American Red Cross to assist families in need.

On Lee National Denim Day, an annual fall fundraiser for the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, Adobe San Jose and Seattle employees raised US$3,698 in donations and matching funds, nearly US$1,000 more than in 2002.

During the annual three-week benefits open-enrollment period in October, the Payroll Giving Program — available to Adobe employees in North America and Edinburgh, Norwich, and London, U.K.—received 111 charitable pledges totaling US$98,000, including matching funds. The same period in 2002 yielded 97 pledges totaling US$53,000.

Also in October, the Worldwide Licensing Department in San Jose conducted its second annual paper and plastic bag collection for Sacred Heart Community Service, which uses them to distribute food and clothing to customers of its resource center. Adobe employees donated more than 10,000 bags—doubling the 2002 results.

In Seattle, three Adobe volunteer teams spend one lunch hour per month sorting donated food at the FamilyWorks food bank. The schedule is so reliable that the organization plans truck deliveries around it.

Each quarter, 15 to 20 Seattle employees devote a lunch hour—rain or shine—to picking up litter in the Fremont neighborhood around the Adobe site for the City of Seattle's Adopt-a-Street program.

At B.F. Day Elementary School, 15 Adobe Seattle employees each completed six hours of training to become mentors for the 2003-04 school year, leading educational activities and games as well as helping students with homework.

In May, 80 Adobe Ottawa employees "brown bagged it" instead of dining out on the Ottawa Food Bank's annual Lunch Money Day, donating the savings and raising US$1,600, including matching funds—the largest contribution by any employer. In just over a week in October, Ottawa employees collected three shopping carts of groceries for the Food Bank, with a crew of seven volunteers delivering and sorting the goods on the final day of the drive. Ottawa employees also donated more than 100 used cell phones and 40 printer cartridges from their home computers for the Food Bank's recycling program, which exchanges collected items for operating funds at an area recycling center.

Employees in Arden Hills, Minnesota, participating in Adobe's Community Involvement Month for the fifth consecutive year, raised US$2,820 in personal and matching contributions for the Gillette Children's Specialty Healthcare hospital and the Animal Humane Society of Hennepin County.

When the 11th Special Olympics World Summer Games came to Dublin, Ireland, the enthusiasm was contagious. The event took place outside the U.S. for the first time and was the world's largest 2003 sporting event. Five Adobe Dublin employees signed up as volunteers, undergoing evening and weekend training sessions stretching over five months and giving a week's vacation to their duties. The group also decided to organize Adobe's participation in the Sponsor an Athlete program, which assists Special Olympics participants from developing countries and other disadvantaged backgrounds. To raise the required US$1,200 for an athlete, the volunteers organized and promoted a raffle with more than a dozen donated prizes. Much to the team's surprise, the event generated US$8,640, including Adobe matching funds—enough to sponsor seven athletes who went home to Hungary, Poland, and Puerto Rico with three gold medals, one bronze medal, and five fourth-place awards.

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