‘tis the season to give back

December marks give back week for Cisco – a recognition of the time we invest in supporting our communitieis. In Australia & New Zealand we are highlighting milestone give back moments from the year. At Cisco, employees receive 10 days (that’s right!) to donate time to causes close to their passion points, known as ‘Time to Give’.

Here are some of the ways in which the team are giving back to the community. If you’re a not for profit organisation looking for hands of support, please reach out to us.

Cisco supports Plunket | New Zealand

The Cisco team in New Zealand was proud to support New Zealand’s premium PGA pro-am Gold day in Queenstown earlier this month, alongside Cello. It was all to raise funds for Plunket, New Zealand’s largest support service for the health and well-being of tamariki under five and their whanau.

The Central Park Plunge and a half marathon for Telethon | Western Australia

Heidi, Fletcher, Gary and Alex banded together to complete the Central Park Plun

ge: an abseil of 130 metres from the top of the Central Park Building on St George’s Terrace in Perth. The team raised over $6,000 towards the Fiona Wood Foundation, a not for profit organisation that facilitates research for the Burns Centre of excellence with the aim to improve the outcomes of people who have sustained burn injuries locally and around the world.

The team in Perth were busy as Pavel also completed a half marathon to raise money for Telethon, which aims to build a better and brighter future for Western Australia children.

Cruising for the Children’s Charity, Variety | Canberra

Craig, Mark and Gill set off on an epic 1378 km journey over six days around the south slopes of Canberra including the Riverina areas to raise money for disadvantaged kids on behalf of Variety, the Children’s charity.

In a squad of 91 posties bikes comprising of 15 teams and 22 single entrants raised a total of $371,000.  They all headed off from Yass to visit eight schools, which were the recipients of the donations. The route saw the riders

visit rural areas such as Yass, Holbrook, Yackandandah, Bright, Wangaratta, Corowa, Wagga, Ardlethan, Cootamundra and finally, back to Yass.

The Cisco team managed to fund raise over $8000 for children in need and had the privilege to present one of the cheques to the Cootamundra public school. Funds were also matched by Cisco Benevity donation matching to help their contribution. The team is looking forward to next year, and growing in their squad of riders.

One thing the team is most proud of, is that the funds raised also enabled flying a paediatriction out to regional and rural areas to diagnose children that would otherwise go undiagnosed.

Movember | Melbourne and Sydney

This year the Melbourne branch teamed up with the Movember Foundation for the third consecutive year. Building on past successes, they stepped up their involvement by forging a closer partnership with the foundation for this year’s campaign. Kicking off November with an exciting launch event, the team rallied together to raise awareness and funds for men’s health, tackling issues like prostate cancer, testicular cancer, and mental health.

A key focus this year was highlighting the “ripple affect” and how men’s health impacts everyone—because everyone has a male in their life. Adding a bit of competitive spirit the “Cisc-Mo-Melbourners,” went head-to-head with the Sydney banch, raising nearly $6,000. One of the team leaders in Melbourne, Dave, shared his perspective on Movember this year: “I was honoured to lead this campaign in Melbourne, especially as I personally celebrated my 2-year cancer clearance this month—making this Movember even more meaningful for me.”

Cisco’s Charity Golf Day | Melbourne

A huge team of Cisco employees and partners came together to raise funds for The Royal Children’s Hospital to support all the children and families in need.

With a 120 players in the field, the players enjoyed a game on the golf course, ending in an auction to raise funds for the hospital, with more than $43,000 raised. A huge thanks to all involved.

Santa’s Grotto for the Children’s Hospital |Brisbane

The Christmas spirit is alive in Brisbane with the team hosting the annual

virtual Santa visit via Webex into the Children’s Hospital. Supported by the Starlight Foundation (and fundraising for them) as well as in collaboration with DXC and Qld Heath. Santa’s Grotto has been broadcasting to the hospital for 14 years in a row, with Santa making the hospital a stop before he travels the world.

Packing happy boxes | Sydney

In North Sydney, the First Nations Allies inclusive community invited 40+ team members to help box and ship 150 Happy Boxes for First Nations women in two rural communities: Mildura (Victoria) and Aitkenvale (Queensland). Each box contained around 10 personal care items, along with a personalised note.