Earlier this spring, Limeade employees initiated a meeting to discuss meaningful ways to honor and celebrate LGBTQ Pride Month at Limeade in 2019. Several LimeMates identify and participate in this community, and as a company, we’re not only focused on diversity and inclusion efforts in our own office, but also how we can collectively maintain our values of diversity and inclusion across the board, for local and remote employees.
The Limeade Kaleidoscope Council quickly realized the importance for Limeade to transcend the expected rainbow-tagged corporate response. We wanted to give every employee the opportunity to engage with the cause and participate in companywide activities. In other words, we wanted to move beyond broad awareness to empower our colleagues to elevate Pride at Limeade during LGBTQ Pride Month. So, we built three activities in the Limeade ONE platform centered around education, attendance and action.
Here are three ways we’re elevating Pride at Limeade with our LGBTQ Pride Month activities:
1. Get educated
The first step is education. Limeade ONE is offering an activity called “Educate Yourself” that asks for employees’ commitment to connect LGBTQ culture to the community. In many cases, people have a general understanding, by personal association or experience, but even the most immersed individual can uncover hidden gems from the past. These profound moments of history often pass unhighlighted, so the Limeade team curated a list of historical documentaries, films, books and television shows to help educate and inspire employees.
2. Attend a local Pride event
Next, Limeade ONE offers an activity called “Attend an Event”, either a local Pride or LGBTQ-supporting event celebrating the shift of attention from vibrant logos online to the actual faces of the community in real life — families, friends and loved ones. We pulled together a geographical list of events across the country and globally that were accessible and available to our teams. Many Pride events offer inclusive, all-age parades or community fairs so everyone can be part of a day to honor diversity and inclusion.
3. Do your part and volunteer
In order to make the greatest impact, Limeade ONE offers an activity for employees to go further than ever and “Volunteer.” Many non-profits have skillset opportunities on tools such as VolunteerMatch and welcome phone calls and inquiries about opportunities to give time and effort for current projects. One close to our hearts is the Lambert House on Capitol Hill. They offer LGBTQ youth over 30 different annual and ongoing programs, activities, resources and services.
Next time you put on that rainbow wristband or attend a local Pride event, remember you’re doing more than showing up and supporting — you’re bridging the gap between your people at work. From black history to women’s equality, from working parents to mentorship, Limeade supports awareness, education and action, and most of all, elevating your company’s culture and supporting all the communities represented in your workplace.