Making a Splash for Women’s Health with Grounds for Health Carwash
Posted by Contributor on 14 Aug 2009 at 4:43 pm | Tagged as: Life In Vermont, Social Responsibility
By Kristen Mercure
This past week has been big for cleaning at Green Mountain Coffee. Not only did our crew tackle our fifth year of River Cleanup and I cleaned up my desk,* but a devoted group of Green Mountain Coffee employees also got down to the business of transforming dirty cars into clean ones.
That’s right: Last Thursday was our third annual Grounds for Health Carwash.
See more picures from the event on our Flickr account
But, of course, you knew that, because I think I helped to clean your car, right? ;)
Over 40 Green Mountain Coffee and Grounds for Health volunteers, known as the “Clean Team,” rolled up their sleeves for a full day of washing, detailing (à la Gigi’s Cleaning & Detailing), and, for some of us, disjointed dancing to raise money to support Grounds for Health, an international nonprofit based in Waterbury, Vermont that provides vital cancer screening and treatment for women in coffee-growing communities.
Clad in splash-tastic yellow and blue carbon-neutral shirts from Aurum Organics, the Clean Team left no mud flap, grill, or ski rack unturned. After enforcing our “No Idling” policy by pushing cars into place, the team attacked the dirty vehicles with Seventh Generation environmentally-friendly soap until the cars (and, on occasion, bikes) were aglow. We were even treated to a special in person appearance by Ben and Jerry, who took their turn pushing a few cars, as well.
Making the day even better was the killer combination of music, ice cream, and prizes. The Growlers provided the rockin’ soundtrack to our cleaning efforts while the Ben & Jerry’s scoopmobile doled free ice cream and the event’s signature drink (and biggest hit) the C3 – a daringly delicious combination of Green Mountain Coffee’s Fair Trade Organic Sumatran Reserve, Ben & Jerry’s Fair Trade Coffee Buzz Buzz Buzz, and Coffee Extracts & Ingredients’ Cappachillo. The day ended with a raffle featuring prizes from fine Waterbury establishments like Video King, Vermont T-shirt Co., Arvad’s, and, a personal favorite, the Moretown Landfill.
Sadly, I missed the wagon on this one – there’s always next year.
Thank you to all who came out to the carwash, our energetic volunteers, and our fearless co-sponsors: Ben & Jerry’s, Gigi’s Cleaning & Detailing, and Barry T. Chouinard, Inc.
“But what about the money?” I hear you ask. The numbers are still being tallied. The funds will help to support the organization’s mission to create sustainable and effective cancer prevention programs, with a focus on the early detection and treatment of cervical cancer — a leading cause of death among women who lack access to healthcare in developing countries. Grounds for Health was founded by members of the specialty coffee industry who discovered that women in Mexico and Central America have high rates of cervical cancer, which is preventable and treatable if caught early.
To support Grounds For Health and learn more about this organization, visit http://www.groundsforhealth.org/donate.html.
*…okay, that’s a bit of a fib. My desk is clean, just in a state of cleaned chaos – organized in piles, mounds, and boxes. There’s a system, mind you, and if you tell me what it is I’ll happily give you a virtual pat on the back.
-Kristen (Finally all dried out)
Kristen,
Great blog post! Had a blast at the carwash as well – great to have the professionals at Gigi’s give the interior of my car a thorough cleaning. Wouldn’t have happened otherwise….