Community Investment

Helping our communities start the school year PROUD

For the third year in a row, Office Depot helped deserving students get the supplies they needed to start the new school year feeling confident, prepared and proud through our Start Proud!® community investment program. Associate volunteers across the country committed to a social distancing-appropriate process to assemble 18,000 brand-new backpacks with school supplies, valued collectively at over $1.5 million, and distribute them to students at more than 25 Title I schools. With continued support from Boise Paper and Domtar Paper, each backpack included one $20 Office Depot® OfficeMax® merchandise cards for families to purchase additional supplies for their student. In addition, principals at 18 of the selected Start Proud!® schools recognized one outstanding educator with Office Depot’s "All-Star Teacher" award. The deserving teacher was then surprised with new furniture, teaching supplies, technology and tech services from Office Depot, valued at over $1,500. 

 

 

In 2018, Office Depot launched a new community investment initiative called #depotdifference. As our company continues to change and evolve in exciting ways, so too has the way in which we support the communities where we live and do business. #depotdifference brings an employee-centric, hands-on approach to empower us all to make a difference through robust employee volunteerism and philanthropic giving.


ODP announces $1.5 million donation to Feeding America® in support of its COVID-19 Response Fund

The Office Depot family is committed to supporting students, teachers, schools, families and communities in need during this unprecedented and challenging time. In addition to providing approximately $500,000 in support grants to Title I schools and non-profit organizations, Office Depot is pleased to announce a $1.5 million donation to Feeding America® in support of its COVID-19 Response Fund to help local food banks across the country as they assist communities impacted by the pandemic.


Associates make a #depotdifference during Office Depot’s Season of Service

Our annual Season of Service campaign was conducted over 6 weeks of the holiday season and in 20 communities across the county in 2020. During this time our associates volunteered in 75 service opportunities, including 30 hunger relief projects, food drives and distributions; 20 projects to support families in distress through Ronald McDonald Houses; and 25 projects to support Boys & Girls Clubs, including toy drives and distribution events. More than $100,000 was donated to support Boys & Girls Clubs across the country through direct grants and toys for the youth who attend the Clubs.


The Mentorship Movement: Meet Volunteer Mentor Misty Wilson

One of the #depotdifference programs we are most proud of is our Mentorship Movement, which has empowered Office Depot associates like Misty Wilson to build rich, long-term mentoring relationships with at-risk youth. Since inception of the Movement, Misty has been matched with a mentee from our nonprofit partner Pathway To College, where together they’re working diligently on exam preparation, the college application process, and the life-balance skills needed to succeed at the next level.

 


Watch the video below to see how 'Season of Service' came to life.

 

A Message From Gerry

“#depotdifference brings our associates together in a special way. Whether renovating a school campus, providing backpacks full of supplies to students, or mentoring at-risk youth, we’re building a Caring Culture in our company and in our communities.”

— Gerry Smith, Chief Executive Officer, The ODP Corporation


 

Elevate Together™

ELEVATE TOGETHER™ powered by Round It Up America® is Office Depot’s new nonprofit initiative designed to address systemic discrimination and historical racial disparities in business growth and profitability in Black and Hispanic communities. Learn more here


Depot Day of Service

Depot Day of Service is our company’s flagship volunteer celebration. On a designated day each spring, nationwide, associates, family members and friends of Office Depot join in the fun of volunteering in their local large-scale community service project.


Start Proud!™

Starting in 2018, Start Proud!™ is going strong as Office Depot’s signature back-to-school philanthropic initiative. This program was created to help foster brighter beginnings for schools in low-income communities nationwide and to give students, parents and teachers the supplies they need to start the school year confident, prepared and proud. Start Proud! celebratory assemblies are held at elementary schools across the nation, and include inspiring remarks, the distribution of backpacks and supplies for students, and special recognition and gifts for educators.