Community
Our Legacy of Giving
Employees of The Toro Company around the world volunteer with local charitable organizations and civic projects including supporting the beautification and preservation of outdoor environments, water conservation, community health and housing and youth enrichment. TTC extends the impact of our employees’ efforts through matching gifts and the donation of products and expertise.
The Toro Company provides all full-time salaried employees with the opportunity to volunteer up to 20 hours of their time during the workday each year. Within the U.S., the Dollars for Doers program donates $300 to qualifying nonprofit organizations where employees volunteer at least 30 hours annually outside their normal work schedule. Our Team Program matches charitable funds raised by teams of six or more U.S. employees to approved organizations, ranging from $100 to $1000. Finally, the Individual Heroic Effort Program supports our domestic employees who participate in a charitable event of three or more days in length with a matching donation of $100 to $1000.
Our signature employee volunteer programs include the following partnerships:
- Habitat for Humanity: For more than a decade, our employees have volunteered their time to help build homes for families in need. TTC also donates walk power mowers, yard tools and irrigation products to help Habitat homeowners maintain their properties
- United Way: Each year, our employees donate their time, leadership and dollars through various United Way fundraising events to help make a lasting impact in our communities. In Minnesota, TTC is recognized as a "Million Dollar Partner" for raising more than $1 million dollars each year through employee and Foundation contributions.
- Meals on Wheels: To help those in our communities who are unable to shop or prepare meals for themselves, TTC employees have graciously donated their time to provide nutritious meals to those in need. In 2020, as a result of the challenges created by the COVID-19 pandemic, this critical service became even more important and our employees were there to help.
- Skills-Based Volunteering: Employees participate in a diverse range of skills-based volunteering projects helping improve parks, schools, sports fields and other green spaces. Since 2005, TTC employees have proudly teamed up with the Minnesota Twins organization to help rebuild distressed youth baseball and softball fields.
$3.4M
DONATED TO THE COMMUNITY IN FISCAL 2020
In-Kind Product Donation
The Toro Company supports global nonprofit organizations by providing high-quality products to maintain their facilities and reduce operating costs. From donating mowers and other outdoor equipment for workforce training programs, to Workman® utility vehicles for parks and veteran programs, our donations help nonprofits around the world enhance their environments so they can focus on achieving their mission.
Advancing our Industry
At The Toro Company, we believe we can make a difference by leveraging the expertise and assets of our company and business partners around the world to advance the interests of the industries and customers we serve. We focus on supporting projects to beautify and preserve outdoor environments, advance water conservation efforts and promote enjoyment through outdoor physical activities.
Our key focus areas and partnerships include:
Environment
- TTC's strategic partnership with the Wyland Foundation aims to raise environmental awareness about the importance of protecting water resources for future generations and preserving the world’s oceans, waterways and marine life.
- We are a longtime partner of the Environmental Institute for Golf, the philanthropic arm of the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America, donating more than $2 million to help support scientific research, education and scholarships for future turfgrass professionals.
- TTC is a premier corporate partner of the Golf Environment Organization, which focuses on advancing sustainability in and through the game of golf.
Education
- TTC provides funding to support academic and technical agronomic programs to help further the education of future turf management professionals.
- In partnership with the Irrigation Foundation, the National Association of Landscape Professionals and the Landscape Architecture Foundation, we provide scholarships for future professionals to attend key industry tradeshows and further their career development.
- TTC proudly supports FFA with grant funds for their Supervised Agricultural Experience and recognizes outstanding achievement by sponsoring the Diversified Horticulture Award.
Access
- Since 1998, we have donated more than $1 million in program support, scholarships and equipment donations to The First Tee to support their mission to enhance young peoples' lives through educational programs and ready access to the game of golf. In 2020, TTC’s programmatic support was directed towards chapters to address the challenges faced due to the pandemic.
- TTC partners with Project Evergreen’s GreenCare for Troops and SnowCare for Troops programs to provide complimentary lawn and landscape services, and snow and ice removal services for families of currently deployed military personnel. In 2020, these programs were expanded to include healthcare professionals.
- Recognizing the professional and personal demands of frontline healthcare workers, The Toro Company partnered with Plowz & Mowz in 2020 as part of their HERO program to offer free lawn care and landscaping services for those who are helping keep communities safe and healthy. In total, the HERO program donated more than $30,000 in free lawn mowing for healthcare professionals.
Land. Water. Thrive.
Whether in our local communities or in the developing world, we are all important stewards of the water and natural spaces that enrich our lives. At The Toro Company, we work to cultivate, conserve and restore our outdoor environments to ensure healthier, more vibrant and sustainable communities.
Our Land. Water. Thrive. initiative is something that is particularly special and unique to TTC. As part of this effort, we provide immersion experiences for our employees to work with smallholder farmers in developing countries to improve their productivity and agricultural water practices. In addition to the long-term impact on the smallholder farmer the immersion experience strengthens employees’ empathy and customer-focused approach to problem solving. We also are furthering our efforts to help our communities enrich the beauty of the land for the health, well-being and enjoyment of everyone with a focus on revitalizing parks and green spaces.
Developing Countries
As a leader in water-efficient drip irrigation for the agricultural market, TTC has partnered with government agencies, NGOs and smallholder farmers in Haiti, Nicaragua, Honduras, Mozambique, Guatemala, Uganda, Malawi, Tanzania, Zambia and other developing countries to promote sustainable agricultural practices, improve crop yields and build thriving communities.
For families in rural Nicaragua, the land and crops they grow is critical to their survival. Like many other Latin American countries, Nicaragua has fertile land that the people depend on for agriculture, but crop production is inefficient and the threat of drought is imminent. They grow crops for the sole purpose of feeding their families but lack the resources and infrastructure to optimize their productivity.
In fiscal 2020, as part of our Land. Water. Thrive. initiative, we partnered with Opportunity International Nicaragua in an employee engagement opportunity that focused on working with agriculture students and smallholder farmers in Nicaragua. Opportunity International Nicaragua works by linking promising community economic development strategies with microcredit strategies to accelerate and elevate poor rural households. Their partnership model with farmers is a “field to market” approach made possible through their opportunity-owned processing plant.
This program had duel components of working with students at the school to install a water-efficient irrigation system, as well as employees using the human-centered design process to better understand the unique challenges of the smallholder farmers in Nicaragua.
Greenspace Enhancement
Our Greenspace Enhancement Grant Program supports nonprofits around the world in enhancing landscapes, transforming neglected areas and creating new spaces for public enjoyment. Our goal is to help communities enrich the beauty of the land for the health, well-being and enjoyment of everyone.
We accomplish this goal by engaging our employees’ talents and energy in revitalizing parks and green spaces, enriching the outdoor environments of our neighborhoods and schools, educating communities about the importance of the efficient use of water and supporting sustainable agriculture through community gardens.
|
Fiscal 2020 Grant Cities Included: |
||
|---|---|---|
| Bloomington, Minnesota |
Trust for Public Land Crescent Cove |
Landscaping for Midway Peace Park, a new park serving more than 6,000 residents within a 10-minute walk Providing an outdoor play space for children at the Respite and Hospice Home for Kids. |
| Lake Mills, Wisconsin | Rock Lake Activity Center, Inc. | Provide and enhance the community center grounds and garden. |
Together We Can Do More
Supporting our customers and communities is an important part of our culture and core to who we are as a company. During the unprecedented challenges posed by COVID-19, it has been critical that we come together to respond and support those most vulnerable in our communities.
In fiscal 2020, TTC committed $500,000 to assist families and communities worldwide that have been impacted by the pandemic. Grant funding from the Toro Company Foundation spanned all regions where The Toro Company operates, and focused on providing food, health and humanitarian assistance to helping people adversely impacted.
The contributions included commitments to several global nonprofits that are assisting in the relief efforts. This includes the American Red Cross and the International Committee of the Red Cross, Feeding America, the World Food Program, the United Way Worldwide, and United Way organizations in communities where The Toro Company’s employees live and work.
An additional element of the global giving effort included a special program for employees who chose to personally give to designated COVID-19 relief organizations. Under the program, The Toro Company matched employee contributions to nonprofit organizations of their choice in support of relief efforts.
