by Zuora intern Sarah Shaffer, Employer Brand Marketing
In November of 2018, the “Camp Fire” broke loose in Butte County, California, burning 153,000-acres and 18,800 structures in its wake. The students and teachers remaining in the town of Paradise were left without buildings for schools and all the books, computers and other learning materials that fill them. It’s been less than a year and the kids are back attending classes
In a Lowe’s hardware store they transformed into a make-shift school and the town is beginning to heal and rebuild.
The devastation was felt way beyond Northern California. Our ZEOs across the globe were touched personally by the fires, and took it upon themselves to help leave a positive footprint the town of Paradise. In an effort to ensure that children continue to receive a high quality education following the destruction of many schools in the area, Zuora has partnered with AdoptAClassroom.org, a national nonprofit that provides funding for K-12 schools. When the partnership with AdoptAClassroom.org was announced, each team at Zuora raced to raise money to help address the educational concerns that were building in Paradise. Over the span of three weeks, hundreds of ZEOs came together and contributed to the fundraising effort. Jayne Gonzalez, Director of Global PR, believes these actions taken to do good in the community is at the core of who Zuora is.
“This epitomizes our culture here at Zuora. We strive to bring authenticity to the workplace and through community involvement, and empower our ZEOs to collaborate with community leaders to address local and global concerns. We’re very proud to be supporting the Paradise Intermediate School in their effort to do our part in rebuilding a quality learning environment for students.”
On August 27th, ZEOs made the trek up north to provide support to the community and personally connect with the kids, teachers, and parents of Paradise School District. Teachers and students at Paradise got a bit of an unexpected surprise on Tuesday afternoon at their kickoff assembly. Gail Jiminez, Zuora’s Director of Product Operations, and AdoptAClassroom.org’s Ann Pifer presented Paradise Intermediate School teachers and students during the assembly with an oversized gift card for $17,865 to purchase back-to-school supplies. Excitement exploded in the room and the sheer happiness on the students faces across the bleachers was unparalleled. Gail was in awe at the joyous spirit filling the gymnasium.
“That moment, the feeling was very optimistic. The community has seen an outpouring of help, and the school teachers and staff were all very grateful.”
The funds collected will allow the school’s teachers to stock their classrooms with materials to help replace those lost during the wildfire in order to be ready for the start of the new school year ahead of them. Jayne expresses:
“When something spurs a ZEO to act and do good, it’s entrepreneurial, we work together to address concerns around the world.”
ZEOs constantly strive to stay engaged in the broader community and play a role in making a positive impact at both a small and large scale. Zuora’s effort to rebuild Paradise does not end here. We are continuing to raise funds to reconstruct classrooms throughout Butte County.