Food drive: Total's staff proactively involved

30 employees heeded the call for volunteers of the Béarn Soule food bank. Two of them give us their account. 

Employees are also citizens who are well aware of social issues. Through the Action! program, the Total Foundation gives itself the time and means to act for the players in its region. All employees have the possibility of devoting up to three days a year of their working time to solidarity missions. 

Sylvain and Rachel tell us about their experience 

Two of the 30 employees from the Total CSTJF and the PERL who took part in the fall food drive tell us about their experience. In the context of the COVID 19 health crisis, they appealed to supermarket customers for donations. 

Rachel: the good thing about the Action! program is the variety of missions to choose from and how easy it is to sign up. It’s also great to have a real societal impact and to carry out a mission during my working time that’s totally different to what I usually do every day. I chose this mission as it was aimed at vulnerable people, whose situation is exacerbated by the current crisis. I wanted to carry out a mission that would contribute to helping them. 

Sylvain: one of my colleagues at the PERL where I work encouraged me to sign up, even though I’d never taken part in a solidarity action before. It’s something I really wanted to do, so I took the plunge: I wanted to help, do something for society, and these troubled times seemed like the right occasion. Stationed at the shop entrance, I was a little nervous at first, even though things were pretty straightforward really. Being with two other colleagues was a real boost, and we encouraged one another. I was surprised by how few people turned us down. I really appreciated their generosity; some of them had even been shopping especially for the food bank!  

Rachel: it’s true. I was also very moved by the goodwill these food drives bring out in people: many of them give according to their resources, including students and pensioners. I really appreciated the warm welcome of the volunteers and took pleasure in thanking people for their donation and offering them a smile in return (from behind my mask of course due to the safety measures in place). 

To finish, whether working with colleagues or alone, Sylvain and Rachel use the same word to describe this immersion in the local associative sector, contributing to a high-impact mission: “rewarding”. Sylvain would like to thank his colleagues for encouraging him, and Rachel recommends that everyone should commit to a cause.

 

Unprecedented solidarity

The Béarn Soule food bank would like to extend its warmest thanks to all those who contributed to this year’s result, and the organizers emphasized the great generosity and commitment of everyone involved. 

162 tons were collected, i.e. 28 tons more (+21%) than in 2019. An historic record that also puts an end to the decline in donations this fall food drive had been suffering from. An extra 28 tons equals a further 56,000 meals, to be added to the 2,180,000 meals distributed by the Béarn Soule food bank every year. 

Locally, Total also supports the MESA (Business movement for food solidarity) by donating fuel vouchers every year that help finance the rounds of the Béarn Soule food bank.