Surrey, BC – Coast Capital Savings is celebrating National Volunteer Week (April 19-25), by honouring some outstanding employees who are making a difference in their communities in the face of COVID-19.
Chris Maze, one of the credit union’s Regional Directors of Retail & Investments, is a remarkable employee who turned his hobby into a way to help ease the discomfort of health care heroes on the front lines of the COVID-19 response. Chris, who has a couple of neighbours who work in healthcare, realized that there was a common problem plaguing many frontline workers wearing protective masks for long shifts.
“I had heard from my neighbours that they were in pain due to the chaffing caused by wearing masks throughout their 12-hour shifts, explains Chris Maze. “I realized that although I couldn’t sew, my 3D printer was capable of solving the problem.”
Chris began by printing plastic ear savers that took the pressure off of the ears bringing relief from the ongoing rub from the mask’s elastics. Starting with just 20 units that he delivered to doctors at Eagle Ridge Emergency Room in Port Moody, they were so well received that he knew his efforts could not stop there. Chris assembled a team of 3D printing hobbyists and they have since delivered straps to employees at Lions Gate, St Paul’s, VGH, Langley Memorial Hospital, the Vancouver COVID testing site, along with local health authorities in Prince Rupert.
“I began printing these ear savers and then posted to Facebook and Reddit, and the response was unbelievable. To date, we have made more than 20,000 ear savers for the health heroes in BC.”
Coast Capital’s Help Heroes employee volunteer program, empowers employees to volunteer in their communities with up to 7.5 paid hours of volunteer time annually. In addition, employees receive $10 per hour of volunteer time (up to $1,000 annually) to allocate to a Canadian charity of their choice. Coast Capital continues to encourage employees to utilize the program by finding new ways to contribute to their community while also adhering to physical distancing and isolation.
“Community leadership is a cornerstone of our organization,” explains Maureen Young, Director, Community Leadership, Coast Capital Savings. “For many of our employees that is one of the reasons that they have chosen to work at Coast Capital. National Volunteer Week is an opportunity for us to celebrate our amazing employees, like Chris, who are doing incredible work to help others through these trying times.”
For more information about National Volunteer Week, please visit: https://volunteer.ca/
About Coast Capital Savings
Coast Capital Savings is Canada’s largest credit union by membership and B.C.’s first credit union to become a federal credit union. Owned by its 593,000 members, Coast Capital offers banking and investment services digitally across Canada, and through its 52 branches in the Metro Vancouver, Fraser Valley, Okanagan, and Vancouver Island regions of British Columbia.
An Imagine Canada Caring Company and a Certified B Corporation in recognition of its social performance, Coast Capital invests 10 per cent of its bottom line in youth-focused community organizations, programs, partnerships and events. The credit union has been recognized as one of Canada's Most Admired Corporate Cultures™, and holds a Best Managed Companies Platinum Club designation. Coast Capital has a history of introducing innovative products to help their members achieve financial wellbeing including Canada’s first free chequing account from a full-service financial institution and Help Extras®, enabling members to invest in their future. To learn more, visit coastcapitalsavings.com.
-30-