“We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.” – Winston Churchill
With Giving Tuesday just a few weeks away, we would like to highlight how one of our members has chosen to uplift the importance of giving back to the community by honoring exceptional volunteers who support a variety of worthy causes throughout the region at their annual “Carreras Gives Thanks” event. Rejena Carreras (LMR ’93) expressed to us on a call earlier this week that “LMR’s mission of inclusiveness and making a difference in the community is also a part of the mission of Carreras Jewelers.” Below, we asked Rejena to provide some inspiration for this Giving Tuesday (November 29, 2017) by sharing with us what motivated her to create the “Carreras Gives Thanks” awards:
As Carreras Jewelers celebrates our 50th year we are keenly aware that we would not be celebrating this golden anniversary without our loyal customers and our amazing community.
It has always important to our company to give back to the community that gives so much to us. Four years ago, we started “Carreras Cares”. During the month of December we invited 12 non-profits that we either had relationships with as a store or that were organizations my employees personally supported, to each nominate a volunteer that went “above and beyond” for their organization for us to honor. The volunteers were invited to come in during store hours where we showered them with excitement, honored them with a piece of jewelry, and snapped pictures for our social media.
The volunteers were appreciative but my staff did not feel that it was enough. My staff wanted to be able to spend more time with the volunteers and hear more about why they were nominated. But, as many of us know, the holiday season in a retail store is hectic.
Two years ago, we started “Carreras Gives Thanks”, a way to continue honoring volunteers and giving them the recognition and appreciation they deserve. But instead of inviting the honorees to come in individually throughout December, we combined it into a single fun cocktail event in the beginning of November.
This year, on November 1st, we honored 11 volunteers from 11 different non-profits: HandsOn Greater Richmond, The Links Incorporated, Richmond (VA) Chapter, Big Brothers Big Sisters, The Reinhart House, Sheltering Arms, Richmond Triangle Players, VCU Massey Cancer Center, Children’s Hospital Foundation, Thrifty Sisters, Make-A-Wish Greater Virginia, and SPARC. Volunteers, their friends and family, and members from the organizations enjoyed an evening of celebrating each other’s achievements. Carreras’ staff members read “bios” about each volunteer written by their organization, while everyone cheered and clapped. Each volunteer was presented with a yellow rose and a piece of diamond jewelry from Carreras.
“Carreras Gives Thanks” has become one of the staff members’ and my favorite events. We enjoy meeting everyone who attends and recognizing the amazing and dedicated local volunteers. We look forward to continuing this event for years to come!
Rejena Carreras
President, Carreras Jewelers
LMR Class of 1993