Planting, Mulching and Improving Urban Parks: Mei Yang Shares Her Volunteer Story

To celebrate Global Community Day this year, Citi employees are sharing their volunteer stories that have empowered them to have a lasting impact on their local communities. Mei Yang, a Citi volunteer and Financial Planning Analyst at Citi, shares her experience cleaning up parks and planting trees in Mississauga, Toronto. Read her story in the Q&A below:

Why did you decide to volunteer at the local parks in Mississauga?
Mississauga has been home to our Citi office, as well as my family's home for a long time, and I wanted to give back. Through our efforts, we create better environments, healthier communities, and brighter lives. Volunteer work makes us feel good, builds self-confidence and lifts up spirits.

How did you serve your local community?
To support the community, we have taken part in many activities, such as planting and mulching trees, painting garbage cans, and picking up litter. Working with a large group of people to accomplish these organized activities on a regular basis allows us to have a huge, lasting impact on our community.

What was the impact of the support you gave?
The best part of cleaning up a park or planting new trees is to see the effect it can have on the environment and in the community. It is a great feeling to walk through a park on a clean path and see the improvement that comes from cooperation and teamwork. I can't imagine how great a feeling it would be to come back to a park in 20 years and see a tree sapling I planted grow into a large tree.

What are you most proud of from your volunteering experience?
I am extremely proud of not only the physical appearance of the environment, but also the time spent with my son doing something that benefits our entire community. Citi's Global Community Day has always been a fun event for my family and I know it will be for the years to come.

What advice would you give to someone who wanted to start volunteering in their community? There are many areas in the city you live that can be improved through different types of volunteer work, so I would advise new volunteers to go ahead and do something they personally enjoy.

In what ways do you think volunteering makes a difference? What kind of value do you believe it adds to enabling progress in your city? I believe that volunteering is one of the most important things a citizen can do in their lives, not only because of the improvements in the community, but also the personal gain it provides. It feels great knowing that I have done something that will benefit the lives of my neighbors. The importance of volunteers cannot be understated because so many different events, organizations, etc. are only possible because of the volunteers that serve.

What organization will you volunteer with for this year's Global Community Day?
In the past, we have done our events in collaboration with municipal institutions focused on environmental causes. This year I'll be volunteering on a park clean up event in the City of Mississauga.