Corporate Social Responsibility

On December 21st, Community Manager, Dacia Branch, knew something was wrong when she woke up in pain, 28 weeks into her pregnancy. Her husband called 911 and she was rushed to the hospital where an emergency c-section was completed. The baby, weighing just 2.06 pounds at birth, and dropping down to 1.12 pounds the next day, had to be resuscitated and was fighting for his life in the NICU.


Thanks to Griffis Residential’s generous family leave benefits, Dacia was able to stay home for 12 weeks, with pay. “With my old company you could get your FMLA (Family Medical Leave Act) and you could take another 6 weeks unpaid. The fact that Griffis Residential’s benefits provide full pay is remarkable,” Dacia said.


After 12 weeks, Dacia had used all of her vacation time, but she wasn’t yet able to return to work, “They really want you to do skin to skin contact as much as possible, talk to them, sing, read- it’s good for them to hear your voice.” The care burden was great, but the family was depending on two incomes. That’s when Griffis Residential’s HR department put out a call for PTO donations and within minutes Dacia’s Paid Time Off need was met. At Griffis Residential, Associates can donate their unused vacation time to coworkers who have a family medical emergency or are affected by a major disaster. The donation process is completely anonymous- recipients and specifics are never revealed. Dacia was able to stay home until her baby was ready to leave the hospital at 112 days old.


Malli Mauer, Operations Manager for GR properties in the Northwest, wanted to help Dacia’s family. “It didn’t feel like offering a meal or ‘thoughts’ would remove some of the burden the family was going through.” Before the premature birth, the family was planning a move, since they needed the space, and intended to rent a truck and pack themselves. Malli saw a way to help, “I thought that not having to think about the move would make it all easier to handle.” Malli got approval from Jami Pichot, Senior Vice President of Operations, and Griffis Residential stepped in and covered the cost of movers and packers. 


These days Dacia’s little boy is hitting all his milestones and he is very close to crawling. Dacia is grateful that Griffis Residential made it possible to focus on her son during that difficult time. “I know how lucky I am. What I received from Griffis Residential was above and beyond.”