Montego Bay, Jamaica
March 1, 2019
Over 350 LG Seeds employees, dealers and customers traveled to Montego Bay, Jamaica last week for the company’s annual incentive travel program.
In a practice of responsible tourism, a program requested by dealers and customers to give back to the local communities LG Seeds travels to, a day was spent at Robin’s Nest Children’s Home – a Christian orphanage local to the Montego Bay area.
On the last full day of the trip, LG Seeds held an auction to raise funds for three large projects Robin’s Nest needed completed. The night started with a goal of raising $18,500 – enough to cover a new septic system, water filtration system, and vegetable garden for the children’s home. The board of directors never expected what happened next.
In a lightening round of basket auctions and a game of ‘heads or tails’, the goal was already close to complete. Kam Hartstack, auctioneer and owner of Hartstack Auction Group, opened the floor to voluntary donations. Starting at a level of $1,000, many people generously raised their bidding numbers. When the level was brought down to $100 – the entire crowd rallied. The numbers soared and ended up totaling just over $30,000 in donations.
Michele Hein, former Robin’s Nest Board President, said “The outpouring of donated items and monetary donations from the LG Seeds travelers and volunteers while they were in Jamaica last week is greatly appreciated by the staff, onsite directors and board of directors. The generosity of this group will allow Robin’s Nest to attend to much needed projects”.
Nearly 70 people also volunteered a day of their vacation to visit the orphanage, Green Heights Church, and Salter’s Hill School to help with numerous projects that included painting, construction, and gardening.
“The response to sign up for the service project was over whelming – we even had to start a waitlist, there was not enough space to accommodate the number of volunteers.” said Julie Barlage, LG Seeds Meetings and Event Coordinator.
Dave Hoy, Technical Team Agronomist for LG Seeds and volunteer at Green Heights Church emphasized, “We worked alongside members of the church that serves the orphanage. They fed us a five-star traditional Jamaican lunch of rice with fish and veggies, and they took the leftovers to the surrounding houses for the kids there to eat. We were tired, but humbled and our hearts are full. I am so thankful that I work for a company that helps make a difference in the areas we vacation in. We donated six hours of our vacation and received a lifetime of memories.”
Hein concluded, “We recently celebrated the 20th anniversary of Robin's Nest. We have cared for hundreds of children during the past 20 years. We are extremely grateful for the kind and extravagant generosity of the LG Seeds team. We say a BIG thank you to them all. Donations are what keep Robin's Nest going. We hope to celebrate another 20 years!”
“Working with LG Seeds on this project solidified why we love working with the agricultural community. Rural America is made up of some of the most kind and generous souls around; neither vacations, borders nor cultural differences will prevent them from helping those in need.” said Hartstack.
If you’d like to learn more about Robin’s Nest or how to donate, please visit robinsnestchildrenshome.org. More information on LG Seeds can be found at lgseeds.com.
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