Dozens of people put in hundreds of hours just to prepare for Comcast Cares Day, which is when more than 3,000 volunteers will be showing up at more than two dozen locations throughout Washington.

One coordinator who comes back year after year is Dena Searcy, who is based in our Lynnwood call center. This profile of her appeared in an internal newsletter; we wanted to share it with you.

How Dena Searcy Makes Change Happen

Comcast Cares Day Project Coordinator Feature

Comcast Cares Day comes to life every year thanks to the hard work and dedication of our employees, friends, families and local nonprofit organizations. Of the nearly 108,000 volunteers in 2016, more than 900 employees took on roles as coordinators at Comcast Cares Day project sites. No matter the year, the coordinators are responsible for creating and executing the volunteer opportunities from the ground up with our community partners and managing impactful programs and projects around the world. This month, we are sharing some of their experiences. This is Dena Searcy’s

Name:  Dena Searcy

Title, Location:  Executive Assistant, Lynnwood Care Center of Excellence, Lynnwood, Washington.

2017 Comcast Cares Day Project:  This year I’m working with Farmer Frog, a nonprofit that aims to end childhood hunger by building school gardens. We are helping them save vintage trees, which are 140-year-old trees that we’ll relocate to a new orchard where they can grow in abundance. We will make rain barrels to help collect water and create raised garden beds. We will also help make vertical aquaponics lattice walls that will be delivered to the 13 school sites and finish a hoop house (hot house) to start plants.

How many years have you been a project coordinator: All 16 years we have been doing Comcast Cares Day.

What is your favorite part of Comcast Cares Day: I make Comcast Cares Day a family affair and everyone gets involved. My husband, Bill, works for Comcast too and is my co-lead for the project. Our kids, grandkids, grandparents and friends all help with planning and roll up their sleeves on Comcast Cares Day. I love making the communities we live in better together with my family.

What part of being a project coordinator makes you proudest:  I have 21 supervisors on my Comcast Cares Day committee. They each take a piece of the project like social media, employee communications and project management. Their dedication makes it so much fun for our employees.

What impact do project coordinators have on Comcast Cares Day:  Creating the best outcome for our partners and lasting memories for our employees.

What does Comcast Cares Day mean for your community:  It positively impacts our community so everyone can enjoy a better future. What truly amazes me is how this program has grown in volunteers over the last 16 years. I am so excited to have been a part of this program from the beginning and look forward to continued involvement.