For F5 Software Engineer Aphral Griffin, life has gone to the dogs. This includes nights and weekends, when she is a volunteer boarder for Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind. Boosted by the F5 Community Impact Grant that she secured for the nonprofit organization where she volunteers, a very special puppy is about to be unleashed into the world and begin his mission. Say hello to Nacho.
“Guide, assistance, and community dogs, like Nacho, enable people who are vision impaired and families of children with autism to achieve improved mobility and independence,” says Griffin.
But training is specialized, time intensive, and expensive. And that’s why Griffin applied for one of the $5,000 F5 Community Impact Grants awarded each quarter to the nonprofits where F5 employees volunteer their time.
“The grant covered the cost of the first year of Nacho's training,” Griffin says. “We held a vote in the Cork office to name him and received regular updates on his training.
“These dogs have a life-changing impact,” she adds. “I can't thank the Community Impact Grant Committee enough for choosing my application.”
F5 Community Impact Grants program reaches five-year milestone
This year, the F5 Community Impact Grant program celebrates its five-year anniversary. Since its inception in 2020, F5 has awarded $500,000 in grants to community nonprofit organizations where F5ers volunteer around the world.
From the very start, it’s been a truly people-led initiative. The grants are selected by a committee of employees who are passionate about volunteering and have been through the grant application process themselves.
“In addition to being previous grant winners, those on the committee have volunteerism at their core. They decide which of their peers will receive grant support,” says Carina Weyer, Senior Global Impact Manager at F5.
The goal of these grants is to honor and support the volunteer work of F5 employees across the globe. The committee picks five winners and awards a total of $25,000 in funding each quarter. Grant winners, the F5 volunteers and their nonprofits, are highlighted at a quarterly companywide meeting to showcase their work and commitment to their communities.
“Anyone can apply,” says Weyer. “We recognize both volunteers who’ve supported a cause for decades and those who recently saw a community need and jumped in to help.”
Over the last five years, the program has supported charities focused on causes from animals to homelessness to health.
Lydia Islan, F5 Sr. Director of Business Operations, is on the board of a Washington state nonprofit called Page Ahead. Islan’s selection as an F5 grant winner helped fund a program called Book Up Summer.
The initiative aims to ensure underprivileged kids know how to read by third grade—putting them on a more equal footing with their peers for the rest of their lives. “Kids in grades K-2 choose 12 brand new books to keep and own and read over the summer,” Islan says. “It prevents the ‘summer slide’ and sets them up for lifelong reading success.”
Adds Islan, “I have worked for companies who offer donation matching, but what F5 does is so much more. F5 provides funds, but they also provide a platform for me to share more about this amazing organization and make me feel 100% supported in my volunteer efforts.”
An F5 Community Impact Grant also helped fund Zvi Tibber’s passion for the medical nonprofit MDA-Magen David Adom. As a volunteer paramedic in Israel, he sees the grant provide a second chance at a beating heart. “The defibrillator we purchased with the grant funds has already been used on multiple occasions, potentially saving lives,” says the F5 Director of Engineering.
F5er and volunteer paramedic Zvi Tibber secured a grant to purchase a defibrillator to save lives.
“The opportunity to secure a $5,000 Community Impact Grant from F5 is incredibly meaningful to me as both an employee and a volunteer,” says Tibber. “It allowed me to bridge the gap between my professional life at F5 and my deeply held commitment to community service.”
For F5 Technical Recruiter Amy Congleton, volunteering to support Camp Rainbow Gold is her passion. The camp provides free, emotionally empowering experiences to Idaho children diagnosed with cancer, and their families. "I lost my cousin to cancer when he was young, so the mission has always hit close to home.”
The F5 Community Grant covered the costs for three campers to attend. “Working for a company that chooses to give back through the eyes of its employees and the causes they care about says so much about our culture,” she says. “I am so grateful to have been selected and to have such impact on an organization that I hold so close to my heart.”
F5 Legal Coordinator Edgar Ramos feels just as strongly about his cause—helping dogs in Mexico find permanent homes through Narices Mojadas (Mexicanes), the nonprofit where he volunteers. “For me personally, securing this grant was a dream come true,” he says. “It means we can extend compassion and care to even more dogs, providing vital medical attention and nourishment, while ensuring more dogs are given a second chance at life in loving homes.”
An ongoing commitment to supporting F5 volunteerism
Looking to the future, the F5 Community Impact Grant Program and its employee committee will continue to award grants and recognize F5 volunteers each quarter. It’s one of several community impact initiatives happening at F5 right now.
Visit F5 Global Good for more information.
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