See how employee volunteering creates a ripple effect, strengthening nonprofits, workplace culture and communities through meaningful service.
How Employee Volunteering Creates Ripples of Community Impact
At OtterCares, we believe some of the most meaningful change starts with a single act of service.
When employees volunteer, they’re not just filling a shift or checking a box. They’re building relationships, strengthening nonprofits, and helping create communities where people feel supported and connected. Often, the impact of employee volunteering reaches much further than anyone expects.
At OtterCares, we have seen that ripple effect firsthand through employees like Kelly Bruehl.
One Employee’s Commitment to Volunteering
In 2025, Kelly volunteered 90 hours across 13 nonprofit organizations, far exceeding OtterBox’s annual volunteer goal per employee. While those numbers are impressive, they’re only part of the story. What stands out most is the consistency with which she shows up for causes she cares about and the way she helps others find opportunities to do the same.
Over the years, Kelly has volunteered with organizations including Food for Thought, the Food Bank for Larimer County, and Big Brothers Big Sisters. She also serves as an OtterCares Ambassador, helping connect fellow employees to volunteer opportunities that align with their interests, skills, and passions.
What we admire most about Kelly’s approach is that she understands volunteerism is personal. Not everyone is passionate about the same cause, and not everyone engages in the same way. By taking time to understand what matters to others, she helps make community service feel accessible and meaningful.
And that’s where the ripple begins.
How Employee Volunteering Creates a Ripple Effect
Kelly’s commitment to service has inspired people around her, from coworkers to family members. Through her work with the Food Bank for Larimer County, she helped coordinate more than 30 volunteers who distributed over 1,200 Thanksgiving turkeys to families across Northern Colorado in 2025. What started as an individual’s desire to give back grew into a larger volunteer effort that supported thousands of community members.
Stories like hers are a reminder that volunteerism is about more than hours served. It’s about creating connections between people and causes. It’s about helping nonprofits build capacity to fulfill their missions. And it’s about giving employees opportunities to contribute to something bigger than themselves.
Why Employee Volunteer Programs Matter
For companies, investing in employee volunteering is also an investment in culture. When employees are encouraged to engage with their communities, they return with fresh perspectives, stronger relationships, and a deeper connection to the organization’s values. Service creates shared experiences that strengthen teams while making a tangible difference outside the workplace.
At OtterCares and Otter Products, we see employee volunteering as one of the many ways businesses can help communities thrive. Whether someone volunteers once a year or every week, every act of service matters. Every volunteer hour has the potential to meet a need, inspire another person to get involved, or create an opportunity that didn’t exist before.
Kelly’s story is one example of what’s possible when purpose turns into action. It’s a reminder that meaningful impact rarely happens all at once. It grows through small, consistent acts of service that spread outward, influencing people, organizations, and communities along the way.
That’s the power of the ripple effect. And it’s why we’re proud to support employees who choose to use their time and talents to make a difference.