L&P sponsored October’s Third Thursday—a family-friendly event where the Joplin, Missouri, and surrounding communities come together to enjoy local food, artists, entertainment, and shops.
The event’s theme was “Fall Festival,” and it attracted a great crowd! Twenty L&P volunteers helped set up the event and offered free games, mini-pumpkin decorating, a photo booth, candy, and popcorn to attendees. Our volunteers handed out more than 600 bags of free popcorn and helped over 100 kids decorate pumpkins!
We are grateful to all of our employees who made Third Thursday fun and successful! Check out some photos from the event below.
Recently, 19 team members participated in the American Heart Association’s Four States Heart Walk at Missouri Southern State University in Joplin, MO. Combined with a contribution from L&P, the walkers raised nearly $3,800 for the American Heart Association and their fight against cardiovascular disease – the number one killer of all Americans.
Thank you to all those who participated and continue to uphold our value of putting people first!
More than 65 L&P volunteers helped host Carthage Area United Way’s annual Golf Scramble. From planning to hosting the event, our volunteers helped register teams, set up stations, collect donations, and much more.
Together, L&P raised nearly $16,000 for the Carthage Area United Way! Thank you to everyone who participated in making this event successful and continue to uphold our values of putting people first and doing great work together.
On October 6, L&P branches joined manufacturers across the United States to celebrate Manufacturing Day.
Manufacturing Day allows L&P to open its doors, showcase the potential of modern manufacturing, and foster interest in manufacturing careers. It’s also a chance to celebrate our employees and their dedication to delivering quality products to our customers.
To celebrate our Carthage Spring branch, Carthage, MO, hosted over 60 community members, high school students, and Leggett employees and their families, providing tours and a glimpse into the production of our bedsprings.
In India, the Automotive team celebrated with a special meal and a lucky draw contest for all employees.
In China, L&V Automotive celebrated with a luncheon, a presentation acknowledging their achievements, and even handed out accolades to individual employees.
We are thankful for our employees who stand by our products and inspire the next generation of modern manufacturers!
October is Cybersecurity Awareness Month—a time to remind ourselves of the importance of cybersecurity and to ensure we’re taking steps to protect ourselves from cyber threats.
To recognize this important topic, we want to share some cybersecurity tips with you:
Stay informed. Keep an eye out for news about online scams and tricks.
Be careful who you trust. Don’t give out personal information unless you’re sure you know who you’re communicating with.
Keep your devices updated. Make sure your computer, phone, and other devices have the latest security updates.
Protect your phone. Treat your phone like your wallet — don’t leave it unattended — and lock it when it’s not in use.
As August rolls around, so does the start of a new school year for many students. In order to give back to the communities where we live and work, L&P recently made a contribution to Bright Futures Carthage’s back-to-school program.
Bright Futures is a non-profit organization that brings together community resources to meet children’s basic needs so they can succeed in school and beyond. Our donation helped purchase backpacks for nearly 1,700 students!
In addition, corporate team members organized a school supply drive, collecting donations in one of our L&P trucks, which made its way to our Carthage, Missouri, facilities and our corporate office. A team sorted through nearly 2,000 contributions, many of which were packaged items like crayons and markers, and divided the supplies which were donated to five area schools: Diamond, Neosho, Carterville, Carthage, and East Newton.
Thank you to our teams for working together to put people first!
You know that giving benefits others, but did you know it’s also good for you?
When we donate, volunteer, or give gifts, we’re doing some good for others and ourselves. Here are three things we learned about the personal benefits of giving:
Giving helps your health. When we give, our brains release feel-good hormones, which make us feel happier. Giving can also lower blood pressure and cortisol levels, which are responsible for making us feel anxious or stressed.
Giving enhances positivity. When we are generous, our perception of others becomes more positive, causing us to feel closer and more connected to others. Giving can also increase gratitude and help us feel connected to a bigger picture beyond ourselves, which can help cultivate meaning in life.
Giving strengthens your circles. Generosity is contagious. When we give, we also inspire others — both near and far to us — to give. Since we’re all parts of multiple circles or communities, it’s no surprise that, when we invest in the places where we live, work, and play, we’re also investing in ourselves.
References
Brower, Tracy, PhD. “Giving Is Good—For Others, but Also for You.” Forbes, 28 Nov. 2021, www.forbes.com/sites/tracybrower/2021/11/28/giving-is-good-for-others-but-also-for-you/?sh=7aa5caf623a1. Accessed 6 July 2023.
“Five Reasons to Give to Charity.” Charities Aid Foundation, www.cafonline.org/my-personal-giving/long-term-giving/resource-centre/five-reasons-to-give-to-charity. Accessed 6 July 2023.
Suttie, Jill, and Jason Marsh. “5 Ways Giving Is Good for You.” The Greater Good Science Center at the University of California, Berkeley, 13 Dec. 2010, greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/5_ways_giving_is_good_for_you. Accessed 7 July 2023.
“Why Giving Is Good for Your Health.” Cleveland Clinic, 7 Dec. 2022, health.clevelandclinic.org/why-giving-is-good-for-your-health. Accessed 6 July 2023.
Nine L&P employees, representing four of our business units in North Carolina, met in Hickory, NC, to learn about Safe Harbor—a nonprofit organization that provides programs and services to help meet the needs of women and their children.
During a lunch-and-learn session, they learned how Safe Harbor helps women who are struggling with homelessness and substance use disorder.
“We visited several facilities and listened to a young woman share her current journey in recovery from abuse and addiction—it was powerful,” says Samantha Howell, Vice President of Human Resources. “We discovered there are many ways we can support Safe Harbor, and we are looking forward to gathering together to plan our next steps.”
Thank you to our employees for doing great work together and for looking for ways to give back to our communities!
L&P recently supported Third Thursday, a family-friendly event where the Joplin, Missouri, and surrounding communities get together to enjoy local food, artists, entertainment, and vendors. The theme for June was “You Belong in Joplin,” celebrating the June 2020 proclamation from the city recognizing inclusion, diversity, and equity efforts.
At the event, L&P employees hosted a booth where community members – kids and adults alike – could play games to learn about Leggett and win L&P swag and treats. Contests included U.S. and world puzzle maps representing states and countries where L&P has locations, a “guess the phrase and its meaning” game in various languages that L&P employees speak, and L&P trivia.
Lynn Werner, a member of L&P’s ID&E Team and a volunteer at the event, shared, “My favorite part of the event was playing L&P trivia with a few L&P retirees who came to the booth. They shared stories of their work at L&P and were so proud that Leggett was present at the event.”
Recently, Leggett & Platt partnered with Kansas Legal Services and co-hosted an expungement clinic in Pittsburg, Kansas. The expungement clinic helped residents who were arrested or convicted of some types of past crimes get a second chance by getting their records expunged.
Expungement is the legal process of removing or sealing a criminal record from a person’s public record. Criminal convictions and other offenses can stay on a person’s record for years and become a barrier to obtaining employment, housing, and education. When a person’s record is expunged, no information related to the arrest or the conviction can be disclosed to the public, offering individuals a second chance.
Having a criminal record, even just an arrest, can stop a person from qualifying for many types of jobs and benefits. During the free clinic, residents with eligible cases met with volunteers from L&P and Kansas Legal Services, who reviewed their cases and helped draft the necessary paperwork.
“It was rewarding to be a part of such a worthy cause. Each person we helped was so thankful and appreciative,” said Alex Aguilera, Assistant General Counsel – Litigation & Compliance, who volunteered and helped coordinate the event. “You could tell that they were excited to move on with their lives and put their prior mistakes behind them.”