Community involvement is one of the founding principles of Chesapeake. Partnering with community leaders, supporting local initiatives and investing in the communities where we operate are just a few of the ways we give back. Over the years, Chesapeake has developed a reputation as one of the most philanthropic companies in the energy industry and one of the most generous in the U.S.
We support projects such as community and public service improvements, primary and higher education, public safety, health care, youth programs, historical preservation and environmental protection.
Chesapeake H.E.L.P. Initiative
In 2009, we created the H.E.L.P. (Helping Energize Local Progress) Initiative, a company-wide employee volunteer program designed to provide our employees with meaningful opportunities to serve their neighbors and better their communities through volunteerism and community service.
The goal of the H.E.L.P. Initiative is to promote community outreach and volunteer support by connecting employees with local organizations that are addressing needs in the community. By offering opportunities for involvement, we strive to fill needs and build strong foundations for the future in the areas where we operate.
H.E.L.P. for the Holidays
In keeping with the spirit of giving at Chesapeake, H.E.L.P. for the Holidays provides opportunities for employees across the company to help those in need during the holiday season. In 2010, thousands of Chesapeake employees devoted their time to ensure others were fed, clothed and given a joyful holiday season by:
- Donating canned food items
- Supplying coats and winter clothing items
- Sponsoring foster children
- Providing toys for children
Operation Blue
As part of the company's 20th anniversary celebration in the summer of 2009, the company issued a challenge via the H.E.L.P. Initiative – to complete 20,000 hours of community service in five weeks. This challenge was met head on, with Chesapeake volunteers donating more than 26,000 hours of community service in just five weeks to 575 organizations in more than 70 communities across the country. The success of this initial campaign led to the formation of "Operation Blue" the following summer of 2010: an annual summer volunteer campaign allowing employees four hours of company time to give back to their communities by volunteering for their organizations of choice. In the past two summers, thousands of Chesapeake volunteers have contributed more than 57,000 volunteer hours to hundreds of organizations in Chesapeake operating areas. The amount of work completed in just two summers equals that of a full-time employee working 40 hours a week for 27 years. Operation Blue is now an annual volunteer program in which employees roll up their sleeves in the communities they call home.
Chesapeake Mentoring Program
Created in 1995 as one of the company's first volunteer programs, the Chesapeake Mentoring Program reaches more than 450 inner city school children. Oklahoma City Chesapeake employees volunteer an hour of their time mentoring students at one of four inner-city schools close to the company's headquarters: Harding Charter Preparatory High School, Belle Isle Enterprise Middle School, North Highland Math and Science Academy and Horace Mann Elementary, where a mentor is provided for every student at the school.
Since the program began, Chesapeake employees have impacted the lives of thousands of children. The results have improved reading scores, decreased drop-out rates, and created positive relationships between students and volunteers, and encouraged support for other events to support the schools in a number of ways, including donating school supplies, warm coats for winter and toy drives for the holidays. The selfless spirit of “giving back” from thousands of Chesapeake mentors over the years has made the Chesapeake Mentoring Program the largest corporate mentoring program in the state of Oklahoma.
Read more about our community contributions in each of our operating areas in the quarterly Community Ties newsletter.