Wellness Wednesday with Alberta Blue Cross: Hearts of Blue supporting health and wellness within Alberta

Across our province, Alberta Blue Cross supports the health and Wellness of Albertans through various programs. Ashley Balduke, manager of Community Impact of Alberta Blue Cross joins us this morning to discuss how the Alberta Blue Cross employee LED charity Hearts of Blue is making a big difference in our community. So good morning and thanks so much for coming in. Good morning. Thanks for having me, of course. So let’s start off, we’re talking a little bit off camera and this charity started up was only supposed to be a one year thing. Yes. And it is totally blossomed. Yes. So it was actually started over 25 years ago and it was a one time thing to celebrate Alberta Blue Cross’s 50th anniversary and it just gained so much popularity and it was so such a hit with our our team that it’s still going strong. And so there’s a a really dedicated group of committee members who work to find awesome opportunities in our community to donate and volunteer our time. That’s amazing. So why is it so important for Alberta Blue Cross and your employees to give back to this charity? For sure. So I think as an organization, it’s really important to invest in your community and just cultivate and grow well-being I think as an employee for myself specifically, it’s really important to know the company I’m working for cares and wants to give back. And investing in employees with time and resource to be able to feel like they’re making a difference is just huge. Absolutely. Well said, also to 25 years. That’s significant. So I’m sure there’s some amazing stories that’s come out of this. Do you care to share any? Yeah, for sure. So I think my favorite initiative that’s come from Hearts of Blue is our Days of Giving, which is 4 hours of work time where employees are paid to go out and volunteer. So we’ve done some really amazing things with this initiative and and some of my favorites are just, you know, going out to Pilgrims Hospice Society, planting flowers in their courtyard for everyone to enjoy, serving a hot lunch at Braemar School for the Terrace Center students, you know, things like that. I think we’ve we’ve helped over in 2023 / 45 registered charities across Alberta and I I mean we really base our donations and stuff on the need we’re seeing in the community. Our committee members take the time to get to know the organizations and the populations they serve and then really figure out how we can make the biggest impact with that organization, which is the biggest thing. So what are some of the causes an organization that Hearts of Blue support? Yeah. So just like I said, we kind of always look at the need in the community. So whether it’s a drive to collect warm clothing for the winter or Toys for Santa’s Anonymous, whether it’s connecting with an organization to purchase essential supplies they need to keep running or just sending out employees to volunteer. I mean, we’ve honestly touched mental health organizations, organizations that support families there. There’s just so many things out there. And we’ve touched on all of them. I love that. And in light of Mental Health Week, it’s this week actually. What is the mental health effects that it has when you volunteer? For sure, it’s really hard not to feel good when you’re helping somebody. And I think it really just gives your you a different purpose and a different meaning. When you can get out there into the community where you live, work and play and and invest in it, you’re just making it a better place for everybody to live and to be, right. Yep, no, for sure. So volunteers are always needed with organization. So right now if you’re interested in volunteering, how do people do so? So I mean, my suggestion is, you know, do some research into the organizations in your community and figure out what works for you. Not everyone can volunteer or give back in the same capacity. And so it’s just knowing that every contribution is significant, whether that be time, items, money, whatever you can donate. Having something internally like Hearts of Blue really helps breakdown that barrier for people wanting to get involved because they have somewhere to go. And if you don’t have that in your organization, I would just suggest, you know, looking on organization, social media or websites and figuring out what the need is and how you can support. That’s great advice. And volunteering really helps not only yourself but everybody else involved, right? Thank you so much for coming in and for sharing all of this information. So for more about what we discussed today, you can visit Alberta Blue Cross online at ab.bluecross.ca or follow them on on their social media channels.