Press Releases: Northwest
January 12, 2012
Kaiser Permanente Employees to Turn Out in Force for Volunteer Efforts: ‘Day Of Service’ Honors King’s Legacy
PORTLAND, Ore. — For the eighth year in a row, hundreds of Kaiser Permanente Northwest employees will use part of their workday to give back to the community on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
More than 700 employees will volunteer at one of 23 partner sites, located from Longview-Kelso to Salem, on Monday, January 16. Many of the efforts center around free medical, dental and vision care to uninsured patients. It’s all part of Kaiser Permanente’s commitment to diversity and to spreading health in the communities we serve.
Here are details on seven of the sites (each is available for visits by reporters and photographers, and interviews can be arranged):
- Volunteers will grab garden tools to help beautify Arleta Elementary School, 5109 SE 66th Ave., Portland, and help with classroom organization from 8:30 a.m. to noon and from 12:30 to 4 p.m.
- Kaiser Permanente employees will volunteer at two Oregon Food Bank warehouse locations: 7900 NE 33rd Drive, Portland, and 1870 NW 173rd Drive, Beaverton. The volunteers will prepare emergency food boxes in two shifts, from 8:30 a.m. to noon and from 12:30 to 4 p.m.
- Kaiser Permanente clinicians will once again provide free medical and optical care at the Free Clinic of SW Washington, 4100 Plomondon St., Vancouver, from 8:30 a.m. to noon and from 12:30 to 4 p.m.
- Volunteers will work shifts at the newly opened Clark County Food Bank, 6502 NE 47th Ave., Vancouver, from 8:30 a.m. to noon and from 12:30 to 4 p.m.
- Volunteers will help children with multicultural craft projects at A.C. Gilbert’s Discovery Village, 116 Marion St. NE, Salem, from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. A Kaiser Permanente nurse will educate Scouts on staying healthy, helping them earn a merit badge.
- Volunteers will help staff the Stayton Public Library, 515 N First Ave., Stayton, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Most public buildings are closed for MLK Day, but the library stays open to give away donated books in honor of King.
- Volunteers will work to beautify the Hillsboro Community Foundation Senior Center, 750 SE Eighth St., Hillsboro, and visit with seniors from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
For Kaiser Permanente employees, working to spread health in the community is a great way to bring King’s words to life: “Life’s most urgent question is, what are you doing for others?”
About Kaiser Permanente Northwest
Kaiser Permanente Northwest is part of America’s leading integrated health care organization. Founded in 1945, the organization serves the health needs of more than 8.9 million people in nine states and the District of Columbia. More than 479,000 people in Oregon and Southwest Washington receive their health care from Kaiser Permanente. A nonprofit health plan, Kaiser Permanente is committed to helping shape the future of health care. For more information, go to www.kp.org/newscenter. Twitter @kpnorthwest
