Every year, during the company’s annual Month of Service. Gilead and Kite’s global workforce have an opportunity to step away from the office or research labs and give back to their communities.

What started in 2017 as a Week of Service to commemorate the biopharmaceutical company’s then-30th anniversary has since expanded to month-long volunteer activities throughout June.

Last month, nearly 1,200 employee volunteer hours were given to meaningful causes and organizations such as the Alameda County Food Bank, Samaritan House, Knots of Love and the National AIDS Memorial Grove in the San Francisco Bay Area. Other organizations around the nation and world that employees gave the gift of time and service to included TreePeople and the American Red Cross in Southern California, Kits to Heart in Maryland, Dorcas Ministries and Foodbank of Eastern and Central North Carolina in Raleigh, as well as Red Ribbon School in Mainland China, Society for the Physically Disabled in Singapore, Feeding Hong Kong and Gingko House in Hong Kong, and HOPE Foundation for Cancer Care in Taiwan.

Employees also regularly volunteer their time to causes not associated with Gilead-sponsored events, and if eligible, those organizations can receive donations for each service hour through the company’s Giving Together portal.