12.05.08
Red Hat Does Good
No, I didn’t mean "Red Hat does well", although they apparently do.
Recognizing the woeful economic state of the U.A.S.S*, the good folks from Raleigh, North Carolina have decided that they should forego their annual holiday festivities and rather donate the funds to provide 800,000 meals to the needy.
The cash donation isn’t all. Red Hat workers are also running canned food drives. Raleigh executives are throwing their weight behind the drives by offering to donate cash for every 500 cans donated. In Dallas, workers are running a coat drive.
Sometimes I am overly cynical of events such as these and believe that corporations use them to garner positive coverage and publicity. If so, it worked like a charm on me this time.
Nice job either way, Red Hat.
* Union of American Socialist States, comrades.
Content is available under CC-BY-SA
Eldon said,
December 5, 2008 at 2:08 pm
Though you seem to think Novell is not capable of good, it is worth noting that they’ve run annual United Way, Toys for Tots and Food Bank drives for years now. They match employee charity donations in the United Way drive and make additional donations directly. There’s even a program where employees can take a day off work and go work on a farm that grows food for an area foodbank.
I say this not to compare or contrast Novell and Red Hat but to point out that, as an industry, software vendors have been and remain good community members.
xISO-ZWT said,
December 5, 2008 at 2:18 pm
Eastman Kodak in Rochester runs the same charade with United Way, but does some questionable accounting practices concerning it’s retirees.
Roy Schestowitz said,
December 5, 2008 at 2:25 pm
Ray Noorda donates a lot (his wife does).
jo Shields said,
December 5, 2008 at 2:55 pm
Ray Noorda died in 2006. Not sure how much donating he’s done since then.
Roy Schestowitz said,
December 5, 2008 at 3:11 pm
His wife does. It’s in the Utah news occasionally.
Bear in mind that he would never approve this stupid patent deal with Microsoft.