Honda associates have stepped up to support the communities where they live and work in a variety of ways since the COVID-19 pandemic began.

From baking for healthcare workers and writing notes of gratitude and encouragement to delivering care packages and letters to seniors, Team Honda has made social distancing a little easier for neighbors, people in need and those working on the frontlines.

Get ready to be inspired! Here are some of the “grassroots” good deeds Honda associates have done over the past several weeks to help spread goodwill in their communities.

• Robyn Ruitto of American Honda Motor Co. (AHM) in Windsor Locks, Connecticut, has made non-surgical face masks for friends and family, and joined a Facebook group dedicated to “gifting” strangers with wine, snacks, and treats by anonymously leaving items on their porch. “So far I have gifted eight strangers and have four more on my list for next weekend,” said Ruitto. “It’s fun to spread a little cheer, and the Facebook groups dedicated to it are sprouting up all over.”

• Honda of America Mfg. (HAM) associate Ryan Johnson’s children created adorable signs thanking frontline healthcare workers and posted them on social media.

• Honda R&D Americas, Inc. associate Kelly Whalen has been virtual volunteering with the Simon Kenton Council, Boy Scouts of America. He has counseled nearly 100 scouts from across the country through daily video classes, helping them to complete merit badges. He also assembled kits for Girl Scouts to help injured animals, which he arranged for pick up from his front porch.

• In honor of Mother’s Day, Honda Canada associate Kathie Weaver and a friend coordinated with a senior residential facility in the Greater Toronto Area to provide care packages to its residents. “We hope that by sharing this story it will inspire others to remember those in isolation during these challenging times,” said Weaver.
   
• Brad Robinson of Honda Canada Mfg. participated in a number of volunteering activities to help his community during this crisis, including donating blood, and giving to a local food bank.

• To show her support and appreciation for healthcare workers at Brookwood Hospital and Coosa Valley Medical Center in Birmingham and Sylacauga, Alabama, respectively, Honda Mfg. of Alabama associate Karla Dupree baked brownies for the staff members at those facilities.

• Alani Thorns of Alpharetta, Georgia, daughter of proud mom Amanda Moore, an American Honda Power Equipment associate, raised more than $7,000 for supplies, personal protective equipment and research funding for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in her hometown. Alani, only eight years old, sold her artwork to raise money, and was featured in the Atlanta-Journal Constitution. 

• Jeremy Gunsaulies of HAM and his family created care packages (below) for workers at Clinton Memorial Hospital in Wilmington, Ohio. The packages included hand lotion, lip balm, healthy snacks and masks sewed by people at his church.

• Honda North America, Inc. (HNA) associate Mary Miller volunteered with Shopping Angels to facilitate a grocery trip for an elderly couple in Marysville, Ohio. From picking up the grocery list and payment in their mailbox to dropping off the groceries in their garage, the good deed occurred without any contact with the couple.
  
   
• AHM associate Mitch Morgan is thanking essential workers with gift cards (below). He distributed 25 In-N-Out Burger gift cards to workers he encounters on the frontlines, including some security staff at the AHM Torrance Campus. “Most are very apprehensive about taking the gift card, until I explain why they are receiving it. Then, their faces light up with joy and gratitude! I love their reactions,” he said.

• To slow the spread of coronavirus, Honda associates are getting creative with making masks. Nick Price, an associate at HAM, made and donated 100 masks. Similarly, HMIN associate Mike Bennett helped his wife sew masks to donate.
   
• HNA associate Eric Mauk and his family turned their children’s bus shelter into a pop-up food pantry. With donations from the community, the pantry is open at all hours for those who need essential items like food, personal hygiene products and pet supplies.

• HAM associates and their children wrote letters and drew pictures for residents of the Ohio Living Dorothy Love senior facility in Sidney, Ohio.