Employees at FCA's Toledo, Ohio, North Jeep Wrangler plant are now hard at work building the redesigned 2018 model and, while their factory was being retooled, they also helped 'build their community'.
"The relationship between the Jeep brand and the city of Toledo goes back generations. It's important that our workforce continues fostering that very important bond," said Chuck Padden, Toledo assembly complex plant manager.
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"This was our opportunity to come out and show our thanks to the people of Toledo who have shown us great support over the decades."
During this time, the plant's 2,200 employees and 60 retirees took part in a programme known as the 'Season of Service' and volunteered more than 20,000 hours with dozens of community organisations. Their work in the city, home to Jeep vehicles for over 75 years, included weeding gardens, stocking food pantries and building sheds, fences and paths.
Projects included:
Helping Hands of St. Louis
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By GlobalDataVolunteers from Toledo Assembly helped finish a utility shed in downtown Toledo. Helping Hands is a soup kitchen and outreach programme that serves homeless and low-income residents. Among the volunteers who worked on the project was Thomas Hall, an assembly team leader who also gave time on his day off.
"It's a good feeling to give back. The community has given us so much, we enjoyed returning the favour."
Impact Toledo
FCA US employee Rita Jackson, who created Impact Toledo to upgrade and revitalise city parks, was joined by more than 500 of her coworkers to restore 18 parks.
"The number of people who helped was really impactful. Normally, we would never be able to do anything of this scale," said Jackson, of their efforts which included graffiti removal, cleaning up trash, landscaping, painting and boarding up vacant structures.
Growing Hope Farms
At this location, just outside of Toledo, FCA employees were mobilised to work with the farm to make a wheelchair accessible path out of mulch leading from the house to the barn that would enable all residents to visit the animals. When the team realised that the mulch would be just a 'bandage', they decided to donate their own money and expertise to construct a more permanent solution – a concrete wheelchair ramp.
It was mostly about doing it right," said Earl Ramirez, a paint shop team member.
"The farm's owners had a vision for what we could accomplish quickly, but we always want our work to be the best."
FCA US itself spent $700m to retool the North plant for Wrangler production while the workers were helping out in their community.
