Deloitte employees and volunteers from across the country descended on Scottsdale from July 14 – 17 for the 2009 Deloitte National Leadership Conference. The four-day event highlighted Deloitte’s commitment to integrity, professionalism and community involvement for nearly 400 sophomores from universities and colleges across the country.

As longtime partners in support of health and human service programs across Maricopa County, Deloitte worked with Valley of the Sun United Way to identify volunteer opportunities for students attending the conference. From 2:00 - 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday, July 15, more than 380 student volunteers dedicated their afternoon to giving back to Valley communities. Eight partner agencies participated in the Valley-wide volunteer event, including Arizona Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired, Desert Mission Food Bank, St. Mary’s Food Bank, St. Vincent de Paul, Salvation Army, UMOM New Day Centers, United Food Bank and Valley of the Sun School and Habilitation Center.

“It’s necessary for me to work for a company that is very involved in the community,” explained Angela Vistocco, a student participant from John Carroll University in Cleveland, Ohio. “I could not imagine going to work every day without giving back to the people who helped me get there.”

Deloitte has a long history of community service, demonstrated in part through its annual IMPACT Day. Held on the first Friday of June each year, IMPACT Day is when more than 40,000 Deloitte employees nationwide are encouraged to contribute their time and skills to nonprofit organizations.

“There’s always someone who could use a helping hand,” said Jonathan DiCicco from Michigan State University. “There are so many programs in communities, so many different ways to get involved. You should get involved wherever you think you can help out most and make the biggest impact on somebody’s life, because that’s what is really important when it comes to community service.”

Vist vsuw.org/volunteer for additional ways to give back to your community through volunteering.

Community Involvement at Deloitte is focused on helping people and communities thrive by using its best thinking to build stronger nonprofits. Deloitte does this in three ways.

• Think.  Deloitte leverages its best thinking to strengthen nonprofit capacity by helping with strategic, operational and financial challenges, so nonprofits can help more people and communities faster and better.
• Invest. Deloitte complements its best thinking with financial resources through large-scale grants and regional donations.
• Advance.  Deloitte creates and shares new research, content and insights on ways corporations can leverage skills-based volunteerism.