Daily News

Berkshire Bank Earns Capital Region Community Impact Award

ALBANY, N.Y. — Berkshire Bank was recently honored by the Stakeholders Foundation in Albany, N.Y. with the 2014 Capital Region Community Impact Award. The foundation’s annual awards honor exemplary companies for their philanthropic and volunteer work in the Capital Region. Berkshire Bank received the Corporate Volunteer of the Year award recognizing its X-TEAM employee-volunteer program. The awards were presented in a ceremony at Proctors Theatre in Schenectady, N.Y. on Nov. 12.

The Corporate Volunteer of the Year award was presented to Berkshire for its exemplary volunteer strategy that effectively integrated volunteerism into the company’s business culture, had a sizeable impact on the community, and served as an inspiration to others. Nearly 100% of bank employees in the Capital Region have participated in one of Berkshire’s company-supported projects over the last two years.

With projects including fund-raising efforts for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s Light the Night Walk, building homes with Habitat for Humanity, and work with the Regional Food Bank of Northeastern New York, Capital Region employees completed more than two dozen volunteer service projects in 2014, impacting thousands of lives and dozens of communities.

Berkshire Bank’s X-TEAM provides all employees with paid time off to volunteer at company-supported projects. Bank employees help identify, select, plan, and execute all of the company’s volunteer work. This approach allows the bank to engage staff and choose volunteer opportunities that are important to local stakeholders. The program is also another way for Berkshire to give back to the community in addition to financial contributions of more than $2 million annually through its charitable foundations and corporate support.