L&P is sponsoring Third Thursday on October 20. From 5:30 PM to 8:30 PM CDT, stop by Main Street in Downtown Joplin, Missouri, to join the fun!
We will be accepting donations to support the local United Way, and there will be free activities for you to enjoy. For kids, we will have games, a Truck or Treat with candy, and pumpkin decorating. We’ll also have free bags of popcorn and a festive fall photo station.
We hope to see you there—find us by the big rig!
On October 7, L&P joined manufacturers across the United States to celebrate Manufacturing (MFG) Day.
MFG Day gives us a chance to celebrate our amazing employees who further our mission to produce quality products for our customers and allows us to showcase the opportunities in modern manufacturing.
To celebrate, our Carthage Spring branch hosted an in-person MFG Day event, inviting the local community and schools to tour the facility, check out one of our semi-trailer trucks, enjoy a cookout lunch, play cornhole, and win L&P merchandise. Some L&P employees invited their families to the branch so they could show them what they do while at work.
L&P also participated in the Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s Virtual MFG Day livestream. During the livestream, Randall Wood, VP of Manufacturing-Spring and Foam, gave a presentation and answered questions from students and teachers across Missouri. You can watch the Virtual MFG Day recording here.
We are proud to provide manufacturing jobs across the United States and we have many open positions! Join us today: Find Your Career at Leggett & Platt
Leggett & Platt fosters a culture of giving, encouraging our employees to Do Some Good. Throughout the course of our local United Way campaign, we will shine a spotlight on several of the incredible agencies that United Way serves in our community. Times may be difficult, but we have witnessed communities rising to meet these hard moments. If in a position to give this year, we encourage you to support your local agency, too.
In 1996, leaders of several local Carthage churches felt a calling to help feed the homeless. This group banded together to start the non-profit Carthage Crisis Center, a shelter that provides emergency transitional housing to those experiencing homelessness and hunger.
The center’s mission is faith-based. The Carthage Crisis Center addresses the long-term problem of homelessness through spiritual growth and community support.
“Transitional housing is our main focus,” said Jim Benton, Executive Director. “We provide counseling, a room, and an environment of accountability so that people can overcome life’s obstacles.”
Today, thanks to the partnership with United Way and community support, Carthage Crisis Center provides 45 beds for men, women, and families in a 44,000-square-foot facility.
“Because of the support of our community, we have seen lives changed,” said Benton. “People who were substance abusers are now contributing members of society—families torn apart by poverty are united and restored.”
To learn more or volunteer, visit Carthage Crisis Center online.
Recently, more than 45 L&P volunteers helped host the 9th annual Golf Scramble to benefit the Carthage Area United Way. From planning to hosting the event, our volunteers were there—they registered teams, set up tents and stations, collected donations, ran contests, provided refreshments, and much more.
Together, L&P raised more than $16,000 for the Carthage Area United Way. Thank you to everyone who participated and to our volunteers for continuing to make this event special and successful!
During Hispanic Heritage Month, we’re inviting L&P employees to share about themselves and their Hispanic heritage.
Meet Maria Urquieta. Maria is a custodian at Carthage Spring in Carthage, Missouri. She has worked for Leggett & Platt for two years.
“I enjoy cleaning, and the fact that I get paid for it is a plus. A clean environment is important, especially in our work, because it ensures everyone can do their job safely.
I am proud to get along with my co-workers and contribute to a positive work environment. I am also proud of my Hispanic roots. The annual celebration assures me that we are recognized for our contributions and appreciated.”
To learn more about the rich history, culture, and present-day stories of those who celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, check out the National Park Service for a comprehensive list of resources.
L&P Automotive India recently celebrated Ayudha Pooja—meaning “worship of instruments”—as part of the Hindu festival Navaratri. The custom of pooja (Hindu prayer ritual) gives worshippers an opportunity to honor the tools and instruments used in their professions and to recognize the divine force behind these objects that provides prosperity.
This year, Navaratri was celebrated from September 26 to October 4, and Ayudha Pooja was commemorated on October 4. During the celebration, our teams decorated the entrances to the branch with fruit trees and colorful rangolis—art patterns created on the floor. Tools and machinery were deep cleaned, polished, and covered with turmeric and sandalwood paste. They were also adorned with floral garlands and fruits. To invite positive energy and protection, a Hindu priest performed homa rituals as offerings to the gods and sprayed holy water throughout the branch.
Following the celebration, a day of rest was given to the branch’s tools and machines as a sign of respect.
During Hispanic Heritage Month, we’re inviting L&P employees to share about themselves and their Hispanic heritage.
Meet Diana Arciga. Diana is Operational Support at West Coast Furniture in City of Industry, CA. She is celebrating her first anniversary at Leggett & Platt.
“Thanks to the kindness of my branch managers and co-workers, I continue to learn and grow during my work-life journey.
One of the most enjoyable parts of my job is the opportunity to be exposed to the diverse departments within this corporation. I am proud that my paths led me to L&P.
During this month of celebrating the contributions, achievements, and heritage of Hispanic people, I wanted to share this message: Please do not feel discouraged because balancing life obstacles and work is not easy. Remain optimistic, and as long as you continue to work on communication, all of your efforts will be seen. With time, more opportunities will come.”
To learn more about the rich history, culture, and present-day stories of those that celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, check out the National Park Service for a comprehensive list of resources.
As we kick off our annual United Way campaign, we wanted to share the importance of giving to United Way and how its mission differs from other charities.
“When someone gives to United Way, they invest in a holistic approach to community impact,” said Duane Dreiling, the Executive Director of United Way Southwest Missouri and Southeast Kansas. “Because we fund programs that address education, health, and financial stability, their donation helps us support a variety of programs that can impact lives in many ways.”
United Way supports agencies that provide immediate needs to the community. “The impact is tangible,” said Barbara Wright, Executive Director of the Carthage Area United Way. “You are supporting the neighbor across the street trying to stretch their paycheck, the single mother who needs diapers or food due to rising inflation and gas prices, or the children caught in the crosshairs of divorce.”
United Way chooses its agencies annually through a thorough application process. “We want to ensure the agencies we fund provide high-quality service,” said Dreiling. “We also look for duplication of services. With limited community resources, we must assure donors that we are efficient with every dollar donated.”
United Way shares our value of putting people first. Annually, UW of Southwest Missouri/Southeast Kansas and Carthage UW serve over 76,000 members of the community. Wright said, “We talk about the hard problems communities face and ways to combat them, improve them, and live united together.”
Together, we can give hope where it’s needed most.
Our giving has an even greater impact. United Way of Southwest Missouri and Southeast Kansas has partnered with Freeman Health System and Mercy Hospital to coordinate the Care Partner Network.
The Care Partner Network is a collaboration of over 60 non-profits that use a tool called the “Unite Us Platform” to create a referral system. Hospitals and non-profits can make a referral for a service to someone in need, and the system can track the referral and see it to completion.
“We know we don’t solve community issues in a vacuum,” said Dreiling. “It takes collaboration, and now we have a tool to see it through.”
Even though everyone has mental health and help with mental wellness is for everyone, many people don’t discuss mental health or seek help due to stigma—negative attitudes or beliefs about people with mental health issues. On this World Mental Health Day, we can help promote a stigma-free culture by:
Stigma, Prejudice and Discrimination Against People with Mental Illness. (n.d.). Psychiatry.org. Retrieved September 16, 2022, from https://www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/stigma-and-discrimination
We wish our employees in Canada a very happy Thanksgiving Day!
