Supporting Our Communities

Associate Volunteering, Drives, and Donations

At Ross, our Associates are key to our impact. Throughout the year, they help drive our philanthropic mission and provide critical support for our charitable programs through volunteering, drives, and donations.

In 2023, our Associates joined together to support kids and families in our community through a variety of fundraisers and volunteer efforts held throughout the year.

Examples of Associate Volunteer Efforts Include:

  • Valentine’s Day Card-Making: Associates joined together to make Valentine’s Day cards for kids at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Tracy, California.
  • National Reading Month Book Drive: To help children develop a lifelong love of reading, Associates in our Corporate and Buying Offices designed bookmarks and donated more than 800 children’s books to families served by Good+Foundation and kids who attend local Boys & Girls Clubs.
  • Back-to-School Drive: Associates supported our annual Back-to-School Drive by donating more than 570 backpacks stuffed full of school supplies to help young students have a successful academic year in schools and Boys & Girls Clubs near our offices.
  • Halloween Costume Drive: Our Corporate and Buying Office Associates collected costumes for youth served by our local partners to ensure that local students had a fun and spirited Halloween.
  • Season of Giving: Each year during the holiday season we aim to bring happiness, joy, and warmth to our community through our Season of Giving activities.
    • For Thanksgiving, Associates in our Corporate and Buying Offices donated funds and canned food items for our local partners to feed those most in need. In New York City, some of the funds were used to purchase 200 vouchers so families at the Educational Alliance’s partner school could bring turkeys home for their holiday meals.
    • For Winter Wishes, which is our holiday giving initiative, Associates in our Corporate and Buying Offices made the holidays brighter for students by donating more than 550 new items, like coats and toys. The presents were distributed to children in need by our local charity partners, including Educational Alliance, Good+Foundation, and local Boys & Girls Clubs.
  • City Harvest Drive: For the tenth year in a row, Associates in New York participated in a fundraiser to contribute to City Harvest and help keep food on the tables of New Yorkers in need. In 2023, donations from Ross Associates combined with matches from Ross and City Harvest totaled more than $80,000. Additionally, during a two-week drive, Associates donated more than 1,100 pounds of non-perishable food items for New Yorkers in need.
  • Team Volunteering: Throughout the year, teams of Associates in our Corporate and Buying Offices came together to support various volunteer efforts, including packing meals and preparing food for those in need, assembling supply kits for families with young children, supporting Power Hour and other activities at Boys & Girls Clubs, and more. During just our Season of Giving in November and December, nearly 300 Associates participated in 22 volunteer events. As part of our annual Intern Service Day activities, nearly 140 interns from the Corporate and Buying Offices volunteered across the country—packing and sorting food, supporting local students, and preparing meal kits.
  • Matching Gift Program: Through our Matching Gift Program, Associates support hundreds of charities each year. In 2023, Ross matched Associates’ donations to more than 500 diverse nonprofits across the country.
  • In-Store Fundraisers: As described in the “In-Store Fundraising” section, our Associates are also the force that drives the success of the annual in-Store fundraisers for our national community partners, BGCA and First Book. Their passion and commitment to these campaigns help inspire our Customers’ generosity, generate greater support for our partners’ efforts, and ultimately help more young people get prepared for a brighter future.