Feel Good Friday: Home Sweet (New) Home

In 1992, Sargento became the first corporate sponsor of Milwaukee Habitat for Humanity. Today, we remain their most prolific home builder. While the very first build was done by second generation CEO Lou Gentine and his leadership team, now the opportunity to volunteer is extended to all members of the Sargento Family each year.

Thanks to our Tip-off for Homes campaign, Sargento donated $26,000 to Habitat for Humanity after the Milwaukee Bucks won 53 opening tips in the 2023-2024 season. These incremental donations are the very reason we have been able to build two homes for the third year in a row! Since its inception in 2019, the tip-off campaign has raised a total of $161,000.

This week, 20 employees traveled to Milwaukee and helped build our 38th and 39th homes, making friends, memories, and a difference along the way.

Bringing together first-time and veteran builders, the annual Habitat build gathers members across the Sargento Family, bolstering camaraderie and collaboration.

“It’s a great opportunity to get to know your coworkers outside of work because I don’t necessarily get to interact with all the different departments other than email or the occasional get-together,” Kelly Dudzinski, Associate Marketing Manager in Consumer Products, explained.

This year, even siblings worked together to build the two neighboring homes! Brother and sister, Victoria Bernard, Associate Business Process Analyst, and Mike Kubichka, Hilbert Process Technician, worked together on-site due to a last-minute schedule change that made their schedules overlap. Victoria was especially eager to contribute her skills to the build.

“I love woodworking, so this is right up my alley. I’ve been doing it since I was a little kid and now I even own a Board and Brush franchise,” Victoria shared. “Working in the office, I don’t do a lot of hands-on physical work anymore, so stuff like this makes it nice to get back out there.”

Still, not all our builders were quite this experienced. First-time volunteer Kara Sprecher, Kiel Production Utility, spoke with excitement about this long-standing tradition, “I think it’s outstanding! For a company to do something like this, it shows they care about the community and they care about people. I’m glad that I had the opportunity, and I’ll probably do it next year, too!”

Craig Hahn, CFO at Habitat for Humanity, has attended and helped lead every Sargento house build for the last eight years. Even though they were just beginning their second day, he was amazed at how much work was already completed and appreciated the speedy teamwork the Sargento Family brought to the table.

While prepping lumber for the trusses, Carrie Kinch, Plymouth Trim Attendant on 3rd shift, shared why she signs up every year to volunteer. “I love doing this because I am on third shift. I don’t get to be outside during the day very often. The way I look at it, this is my week of vacation in the summer!”

In addition to enjoying summer weather, our builders were united in their gratitude for Habitat’s mission and the opportunity to serve the community.

“One of the reasons I chose to work for Sargento was because of their outreach to communities,” Brett Mittelstaedt, Plymouth Production Sanitation Utility on 2nd shift, shared while enjoying a Balanced Break snack. “It says a lot about the company, and if I can be a part of that, it makes me feel good.”

Brett hit the nail on the head — literally. It’s all about our value of Community Outreach. Shelter is a basic human need, and when people have homes, they can build a foundation for safe and financially secure lives.

“When Habitat moves into a neighborhood, crime goes down, education rates go up, safety and security rise and property values increase,” Portia Young, Corporate Public Relations Director, said. “And when Milwaukee does well, the whole state of Wisconsin does well.”

In other words, sponsoring and volunteering with Habitat for Humanity makes a long-term difference for real people and real communities. It is something the Sargento Family is proud to do, again and again, year after year.