For the last three decades, Disney’s VoluntEARS have been giving their time to benefit local communities, and recently a group of VoluntEARS joined Habitat for Humanity in China as part of a five-day house building project.
The project took place in rural China in the Rongshui County in Guangxi and the team built houses and helped the village install a new drainage system. They also visited the local schools to give books to the local children.
Another group of VoluntEARS teamed with AmCham Shanghai and Horizon Corporate Volunteer Consultancy and helped create crafts with elderly residents. The group also performed dance numbers at a local community center.
In Hong Kong more than 50 VoluntEARS donated their time at four local hospitals in just one day. This was the group’s biggest hospital outreach and they attended a Hospital Play Induction Course offered by a local nonprofit. The VoluntEARS worked with young patients, helping them create and play games.
At Hong Kong Disneyland, the resort’s ambassador Arthur Lau and a group of VoluntEARS welcomed 200 students and their teachers from the earthquake-stricken city of Ya’an. Disney has been supporting the region that was severely damaged by an earthquake this past spring, and this visit was part of that support.
Disney contributed $1 million in aid to help rebuild the schools in that region after the earthquake struck.
The VoluntEARS program started in 1983 at the Disneyland Resort and became a company-wide program in the 1990s. The VoluntEARS program is a global, company-wide initiative that provides Cast Members with the chance to contribute their time and make a positive impact on their community.
