When Bell Bank employee Marci Horack heard about the extra stress the pandemic was causing healthcare workers – and the extra care they were taking to reassure patients – she decided to use her Pay It Forward funds to show her appreciation.
“People are noticing the extra work that it takes during a pandemic, and the risk that they’re taking is appreciated.” Marci Horack, Bell Bank banker support manager
Bell Employee
Marci Horack, Banker Support Manager
Fargo, N.D.
Recipient
Healthcare workers at Sanford Health
Fargo, N.D.
The Need
When Jordan Young’s mother was hospitalized for health issues unrelated to COVID last December, he saw firsthand how hardworking – and stressed – healthcare workers were due to the pandemic.
Jordan, customer service center supervisor for Bell in Fargo, mentioned what he saw to his co-worker, Marci Horack, banker support manager in Fargo, and she was so inspired by his story, she decided to do something about it.
“The extra steps the nursing staff took to make sure they felt safe were just remarkable,” Marci explains.
The Impact
Marci and 5 of her co-workers combined their Pay It Forward funds to buy 250 $20 gift cards to give to nurses and other hospital staff working directly with patients.
“People are noticing the extra work that it takes during a pandemic, and the risk that they’re taking is appreciated,” Marci notes.
Joel Vettel, Sanford Health head of strategic community partnerships, says the gifts helped brighten a lot of people’s days.
“Oftentimes, employees would be exhausted after working a long shift, so we were certainly always looking for opportunities to honor them in what they were doing,” Joel remarks. “The Pay It Forward program is just one more great example of where Bell Bank is not just a business, they’re part of our community. They see what value the place that we live in has.”
Through the Pay It Forward program, Bell gives employees money each year to donate to people and causes they care about.
