Community Involvement

By Emily Eaton and Katherine Block
November 2011

One of the great things about being a small business is that each and every staff member makes a direct impact on their co-workers and the business. We evolve as employees and as human beings because we share our passion and enthusiasm for our interests with one another. Whether it is a software program, a restaurant, or a non-profit organization, we are constantly inspired by each other.

Tiger Stencil designed by Katherine Block for The Wildcat Sanctuary.

Everyone at EG is involved in the community in some way or another. Some of us focus on the interactive community, such as Mahtab Rezai's work on the Board of Directors of the Minnesota Interactive Marketing Association (MIMA). Others contribute to the growth of our industry through mentoring and teaching, such as the college courses John Golden has taught at Minneapolis College of Art + Design (MCAD). And of course, we all have interests outside of our industry as well.

And no one has more diverse interests than Katherine Block, one of our User Experience Specialists. Katherine is passionate about many things, and her enthusiasm for everything from jewelry making to wild cats is infectious. So infectious, in fact, that she inspired us to become a sponsor of one of her primary volunteer activities: The Wildcat Sanctuary (TWS).

Katherine’s introduction to TWS

Kitty, the Canada Lynx, naps on her perch. Her paws are great for walking on snow, but also make good pillows!

During Katherine's junior year at the Minneapolis College of Art + Design, she had a semester-long group assignment that allowed students to reach out to the community and work with clients to solve real-world problems. Katherine's love for cats led her to The Wildcat Sanctuary, a 501c3 non-profit, no-kill big cat rescue located in Sandstone, MN. Katherine appreciates that TWS provides a natural sanctuary to wild cats in need, and inspires change to end the captive wildlife crisis. The recent tragedy in Ohio (after which TWS offered a permanent home for all surviving cats) provides insight into the situations that TWS works so hard to prevent. Unlike "exotic pet collectors" and "wild animal exhibits" with inhumane living conditions, TWS uses private donations to provide natural and spacious habitats so lions, tigers, cougars, bengals, and other big and small cats can have a life free from exhibition and exploitation.

Katherine’s volunteer work

Tigers Sierra and Ekaterina enjoy their Halloween enrichment together.

Despite the fact that TWS is a 2-hour drive from her house, Katherine spends enough of her free time volunteering at the sanctuary that she recently received The Wildcat Sanctuary Quarterly Volunteer Recognition award. As the recipient of the award, she'll get to allocate $250 to a project of her choice. Katherine is designating this money to help finish Ekaterina and Sierra's enclosure in Wild Woodlands – the most urgent project currently underway at TWS. At the sanctuary, Katherine helps with enclosure building and repair, cleaning, landscaping, and feline enrichment creation. She also participates in community outreach and education, and makes a major contribution to their events. This year she served on the annual fundraiser committee as the program designer and banquet support. (Learn more about how to volunteer at TWS).

EatonGolden’s participation

Ciega, the marbled domestic Bengal Cat, loves relaxing on her fire-hose hammock. She has no trouble getting around even though she was born blind.

When we give tours of the EatonGolden office space, we often get comments about how warm and creative the environment is. Much of that comes from the way we designed each space to have picture frames and magnet walls that each EG-er can customize with photographs and art that inspires them. Most of us fill our frames with photos of our family, travel, etc. -- Katherine’s EG workspace is filled with pictures and paw prints of TWS residents. Her passion for the organization (and its residents) inspired us to sponsor a cat for the 2011 season. Katherine chose Ciega, the marbled domestic Bengal cat, and explains, “Ciega inspires me because of her determination to get the most out of life even though she was born without eyes, which is a tragic and unpredictable result of breeding domestic Bengal cats.”

Community Involvement

On October 9th, we sponsored a table for the annual “Jungle Boogie” fundraiser gala, inviting the whole staff to attend. In one night, sanctuary supporters raised almost $60,000 by bidding on silent and live auction items, making Fund-a-Need donations, and buying raffle tickets or items at the gift shop. Jungle Boogie 2011 was a huge success and we were delighted to have been a part of it. And, we are so proud of Katherine for making a difference in an organization she feels passionate about.

The groups, events, and causes that EatonGolden sponsors may evolve over the years as our employees and culture evolve, but embracing (and supporting) the diverse interests of our employees will always be a part of who we are.

Additional Resources