August Cornerstone Donor Spotlight: ConocoPhillips Alaska

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ConocoPhillips’ heritage dates back to 1966 in Alaska with the discovery of the largest oil field in North America – and today with 1,100 employees is Alaska’s largest oil and gas producer.

Helping improve the quality of life of the Alaska community is a fundamental value of ConocoPhillips and its employees. That belief is shown through actions at the top. President Joe Marushack was concerned about homelessness in Anchorage and took a seat on the Mayor’s Homelessness Leadership Council in 2018. He was also the Chairperson for the United Way campaign in Anchorage in 2019 helping raise funds city-wide for many worthy causes that help people regain their footing on life. ConocoPhillips Alaska and its employees have given more than $1 million a year to United Way in Alaska for 17 consecutive years. Additionally, the ConocoPhillips Alaska food drive is the largest in the state and has provided 4 million meals over the last eight years.

As a cornerstone donor, ConocoPhillips Alaska has been a long-standing supporter of Covenant House Alaska. In 2019, they donated $53,300 and in 2020, $80,000 was funded.

Every year at Covenant House Alaska we host an event to spread awareness around youth homelessness by asking community members to give up their beds for one night, raise funds, and sleep outside. Last year, several ConocoPhillips employees participated in the Covenant House Sleep Out and spent an Alaska winter night outside. While they had warm sleeping bags and a tent, they gained a firsthand experience of the harsh weather conditions that young people face living on the streets. With a matching grant, ConocoPhillips Alaska helped raise $90,000 in the most recent Sleep Out.

“The Sleep Out moved me most when local youth shared their personal stories of triumph,” said Megan McKay, Public Affairs Specialist. “Hearing their first-hand experiences with homelessness and what drove them to be in those situations moved me beyond words. The clients of the Covenant House are brave, resilient, and it was an honor to sleep out on their behalf.”

ConocoPhillips continues to show their support for us and our residents because they believe what we believe: Everyone deserves a chance to succeed. And that young people, down on their luck, are worth investing in.

ConocoPhillips Alaska has a simple message of success for our residents:

Make a plan toward who you want to be. Learn what skills you need to learn and find people who are doing that job and ask for help. Realize more opportunities open up as you try new positive things. Sharpen your mind by reading and always be curious and work hard. Your future is valuable and worth spending time on. Above all, believe in yourself, or lean on people who do, until you believe that you matter.

If your organization would like to know more about how to become a cornerstone sponsor of Covenant House Alaska, please contact Chief Development Officer, Joe Hemphill, at jhemphill@covenanthouseak.org