One of videos we’re asked to watch when we start at Health-e Pro is Simon Sinek’s “Start With Why.”
Getting to the why is vitally important: why do we do what we do as a company? How does that set us apart? Once you identify the why, the how, what, and when, naturally flow from it.
When I started at Health-e Pro, I knew of our why: to create great software that makes your job as a food director, school administrator, or kitchen staff easier. Our founder, Meg Chesley, spent her career in school kitchens, consulting with schools, and innovating to the point where she received the Silver Plate Award. As mentioned in an earlier blog post, “Meg’s objective has always been to leave the industry better off than when she found it.” Rather than retiring and sailing the world, she had a different idea in mind: take what she had learned in her decades of experience and distill it into a powerful piece of software that could dramatically improve menu planning and nutrient analysis in schools.
That’s when Health-e Pro was created, and also the why.
But near the end of 2017, Meg presented us with a second why: as an organization, we revel in helping our customers successfully build their business and serve our nation’s school children and parents. At the same time, we recognize there is vast, untapped, human potential to make a difference in our world. Our desire is to be a catalyst in unlocking that potential, beginning with people like you in your sphere of influence. Generosity brings joy to those who embrace it and changes the world by changing people. We want to not only help our communities and the world as a whole, but inspire those around us to do the same. And with that, Health-e Giving was born: where Health-e Pro and Health-e Meal Planner help make the school nutrition industry better, Health-e Giving aims to make the world a better place.
What does this mean for you, our customer? We’re looking at our philanthropic efforts in two ways:
- We will work closely with schools–that’s where you come in–to offer grants, particularly in three areas: increasing food security, encouraging children and families who need a hand up, and boosting leaders of influence.
- A couple of charities have really touched us, and we’ll be working with them and dedicating funds to aid their causes. These are Food for the Hungry, and The Leader in Me.
If you’re a school looking to host a Hunger Project, but need additional funds to make it happen, you could apply for a grant through our Health-e Giving site. If you’re a district looking to incorporate a mobile food pantry, you could apply for a grant. Other ideas include tower gardens in classrooms, students composting to then grow vegetables in a greenhouse, and boost bags to help students get through the weekend. The possibilities are endless!
The Leader in Me is an organization that a couple of us found and were inspired by: the organization works with teachers and school staff to instill leadership principles in everything they do, which then extends to the students in the classroom and continues beyond the classroom. Students learn about and participate in goal setting, data tracking, leadership roles, conferences, and more.
The Leader in Me is FranklinCovey’s whole school transformation process. It teaches 21st century leadership and life skills to students and creates a culture of student empowerment based on the idea that every child can be a leader.
Food for the Hungry works by providing clean water, medical aid, food, educational opportunities, and vocational training in communities, which offers the vital components to lift an entire community up and out of poverty. Where Food for the Hungry stands out from so many organizations is their focus on having an exit strategy in each of the communities where they work, creating improvement that is continued and sustained by the communities themselves.
“Food for the Hungry seeks to end ALL forms of human poverty by going to the hard places and walking with the world’s most vulnerable people. We’ve been serving through purposeful relief and development for over four decades. We believe in the fight against poverty, which is why we serve the vulnerable in over 20 countries globally. We’re moved and inspired by our Christian belief that every person has intrinsic value, and that it’s our responsibility to advocate for the poor and marginalized without regard to race, creed or nationality and without adverse distinction of any kind. We serve on the basis of need alone. We strive to respect the culture and customs of the people we serve in order to preserve their humanity and dignity.”
For our first Health-e Giving initiative, we offered to match any contributions made for World Water Day to help Food for the Hungry build a well. Thanks to your help and efforts, we reached our goal and will be donating the funds to build a well!
Health-e Pro has several intrinsic core values: integrity, genuine relationships, inspiration, and creativity. Infusing everything we do with energy and focus, these core values inspired us to launch this philanthropic initiative in 2018, Health-e Giving, and we’re excited to have you join us or work with us.
Interested in learning more? Reach out to us via email or visit our Health-e Giving page.