Community Outreach
Programs
KOCH EYE ASSOCIATES SPONSORS SAVE THE BAY ANNUAL SWIM EVENT - Koch Eye Associates is proud to be one of the sponsors for the 35th annual Citizens Bank/Save the Bay Swim from Newport to Jamestown on July 23, 2011.
The Bay Swim has been a Rhode Island tradition since l977 and each year raises approximately $250,000 to support the non-profit organization's efforts to protect the Bay.
Koch Eye Associates will also be donating a free Lasik surgery to further support efforts to protect the Bay by helping to create future stewards of the Bay through education programs and advocacy initiatives; ultimately allowing natural habitats to return to the shores of our coast through restoration efforts.
See full article here.
PHILANTHROPY DAY RECOGNIZED - Friends Peter Koch and Karen Adams of Channel 12 share a moment during National Philanthropy Day celebrations Tuesday. Koch Eye Associates was honored as the Outstanding Philanthropic Business. Adams served as host for the event held by the Rhode Island Chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals.
See full article here.
KOCH EYE CARES DAY - Established in 2003, Koch Eye Associates has officially coined July 29th of every year as “Koch Eye Cares Day”, in memory of the late Dr. Peter Koch. Designed to honor and celebrate his spirit of giving back to the community, Koch Eye Associates closes all its offices on this date, sending all 130+ employees out into the neighborhoods to volunteer their services at a variety of non-profit organizations across Rhode Island and Connecticut. The employees spend the day working side by side at such notable groups as Cornerstone Adult Services, Save the Bay, the Audubon Society, Angels on Horseback, R.I. Community Food Bank, Home & Hospice Care of R.I., the American Cancer Society, Big Sisters of R.I., Amos House, and A Wish Come True.” Typical responsibilities include painting, cleaning, grounds-keeping, serving meals, assisting the elderly, and even a car wash. This yearly event is the perfect way of carrying on Dr. Koch’s legacy and showing our neighbors that Koch Eye Associates cares about them.
KOCH EYE ASSOCIATES MENTORING PROGRAM - Koch Eye Associates has been closely involved with the Rhode Island Mentoring Partnership since 1994. Chief Executive Officer, Peter A. Koch, has proudly served as Treasurer on its Board of Directors for a number of years. A mentor himself to two boys for over ten years, he actively encourages the employees to become mentors and freely allows them the time during the course of the workweek to meet with their mentee at a neighborhood school. Over the years, dozens of children have been mentored by Koch employees, often forging relationships that will last a lifetime. Koch Eye Associates shares the philosophy that, “what happens in our children’s lives today, plays an integral part of the kinds of adults they become tomorrow”. We wholeheartedly agree that we want to share a part in making a positive difference!
SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM - Koch Eye Associates’ commitment to the youth in our community does not end with the mentoring program. Each year, we award four $500 scholarships to college-bound high school seniors from around the State. The recipients are chosen from a pool of 75 applicants from 22 Rhode Island high schools and are judged by a committee comprised of Koch employees on academic merit, community service, extra-curricular activities and a creative writing essay.
RI PBS AUCTION - Every April since 1989, Koch Eye Associates has sponsored and participated in RI PBS’s live, on-air, fundraising auction. This week-long annual event is an important source of funding for this vital public service. By supporting public television and its diverse offerings of educational and entertainment programming, it provides us with one more opportunity to “give back” to the community. In addition to the Koch family acting as auctioneers and the staff manning the telephones and working behind the scenes for the evening, Koch Eye Associates donates a LASIK surgery to the station every year, which is auctioned off to the highest bidder.
SPORTING EVENTS SPONSORSHIP – Since 1994, Koch Eye Associates has proudly been the sole sponsor of Rhode Island’s annual Statewide High School Girls Volleyball Tournament. This widely touted classic for high school female athletes has increasingly gained in popularity over the years. For many, it is the premier event of the volleyball season. Hosted by Johnson & Wales University, the field for this day-long event has grown to more than 20 schools. As the sponsor, every year Koch Eye Associates supplies lunch for the hundreds of athletes, commemorative T-shirts, as well as championship trophies, awarded to the first, second and third place finishers. The sentiment shared by everyone at Koch Eye Associates is that as long as the girls want to play and a tournament is held, we’ll be there to support them.
HOLIDAY BENEFITS AND FUNDRAISERS - Some of the most popular events shared by the employees at Koch Eye Associates are the holiday fundraising drives. Each year throughout the months of November and December, special collections are held in all our offices to benefit local charities, such as Crossroads of Rhode Island, the R.I. Community Food Bank, VFW Centers, Gifts of Warmth for Warwick Seniors and many other causes that assist the needy. Adopting families at Thanksgiving and Christmas is always especially popular among the staff. Over the years, the employees have come forward not only with generous monetary assistance, but also donations of clothing, personal care items, and food products.
MONTHLY CASUAL DAYS - Like many business nowadays, Koch Eye Associates conducts “Casual Day” one day per month. For a nominal participation fee, the employees are allowed and encouraged to wear more casual clothing to work, rather than their normal uniform or business attire. In turn, the funds that are collected are donated to a different charity each month, usually suggested and voted upon by the employees. A few of the many non-profit organizations that have been recipients of the employees generosity are the Summer Food Bank, The ImPossible Dream, St. Mary’s Home for Children, Turning Point Therapeutic Riding, The Warm Shelter, the Woonsocket AGAPE Program and area animal shelters.
