BEACON MUTUAL INSURANCE COMPANY
COMMON GOOD AWARDS
BEACON MUTUAL INSURANCE COMPANY
WINNER , MEDIUM CATEGORY : 50 – 249 employees LOCATION : Warwick , beaconmutual . com
Beacon Mutual aims to be the workers ’ compensation insurer of choice in Rhode Island by providing the most innovative programs , competitive products and outstanding service to businesses and their employees .
Beacon Mutual supports local nonprofit organizations by encouraging employees to volunteer their time at charity events , clothing and donation drives , environmental clean-up days , relief and emergency programs , soup kitchens and working with those with special needs . Beacon ’ s employees have shown a commitment to the community , while many senior leadership team members also serve on various boards and advisory councils with local organizations . Employees volunteer through fundraising and engagement activities , with Beacon providing two paid volunteer days per year .
Beacon ’ s employees were involved in the 2023 Week of Service in June , for which two-thirds of the company ’ s employees partnered with seven organizations , including the Groden Network , Gotta Have Sole , the Rhode Island Tree Council , Ronald McDonald House , Amenity Aid , We Share Hope and the East Greenwich Animal Protection League . Additionally , in August , a group of Beacon employees participated in the Back-to-School Volunteer Program with Charette High School in Providence , helping to collect supplies and prepare classrooms for incoming students . Beacon also organized drives for books , clothing and food , collaborating with United Way of Rhode Island , the Groden Network and Amos House .
The Beacon Foundation was created in 2021 to raise money and give grants to local charitable organizations in excess of $ 100,000 per year . Additionally , Beacon ’ s Charity of Choice program allows each employee to direct a $ 100 gift from the Beacon Foundation to one of twenty-four local charities . Passionate employees visited five of the top charities and delivered their donations in person , giving them a chance to connect with the nonprofit staff .
Beacon ’ s commitment to the community also involves diversity and inclusion efforts . The “ Voices of Beacon ” DEI employee resource group has engaged employees throughout the year by raising awareness of important issues facing different groups to celebrating diverse backgrounds and perspectives .
JUDGE ’ S TAKE : “ Beacon Mutual is a great choice for giving employees the ability to go to the nonprofit of their choice and actually shadow someone working there . It ’ s about making that connection and building community .” — Carmen Greene
DR . DAY CARE
HONORABLE MENTION , MEDIUM CATEGORY : 50 – 249 employees LOCATION : Various locations , drdaycare . com
Dr . Day Care gives back to programs that benefit children of all ages in the communities where they work and play . Dr . Day Care founder Mary Ann Shallcross Smith has served as an Inspiring Minds board member , a Court Appointed Special Advocate volunteer , a Department of Health Rhode Island Social Work board member , the president of Family Child Care Homes of Rhode Island , and was the president of Foster Forward . She is a mentor for a Community College of Rhode Island student and serves as a state representative for District 46 in Lincoln-Pawtucket .
JUDGE ’ S TAKE : “ Mary Ann Shallcross Smith is really dedicated to making advances in the child care industry . There are so many challenges associated with recruiting people to work as child care professionals and elevating the importance of pay that ’ s commensurate with the work . She ’ s really been a champion for the industry . I ’ ve seen what she does and it ’ s a difficult , important and undervalued industry .” — Laurie White
60 RHODE ISLAND MONTHLY l JANUARY 2024