FOCUS
Some priorities have undoubtedly changed in this COVID-challenged year. But City of Hope’s focus has remained razor-sharp, all in the name of sustaining hope for cancer and diabetes sufferers around the world
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ith so many in-person events cancelled and even City of Hope’s (COH) National Business Products Industry (NBPI) tour going virtual in 2021, it’s been a challenging time for all involved. However, support by our industry has been unwavering, as this year’s City of Hope Spirit of Life honouree Greg Gibson, VP & General Manager of International Paper (IP), told OPI’s Heike Dieckmann in a May podcast conversation (visit opi.net/podcast). Below are extracts from that interview, conducted jointly with COH’s Senior Director of Corporate Philanthropy Matt Dodd, plus an update on the aforementioned virtual tour in mid-June.
www.opi.net
OPI: Let’s begin with you, Greg. How did you get involved with City of Hope? Greg Gibson: About 30 years ago I was introduced to COH through Irwin Helford when calling on Viking Office Products. Irwin was telling me how the NBPI was supporting this medical research facility and invited me to go on a City of Hope tour the following year. From the moment of walking onto the campus, I knew it was a special place and something I wanted my company International Paper to support. We’ve been strong advocates ever since. I’m also very invested from a personal perspective. My father passed away as a result of cancer when I was three years old. In addition, I’ve long been involved in Type 1 diabetes charity JDRF and what COH is doing in that area too. Those two causes are very dear to me, making why I want to stand behind COH in a significant way even more impactful.
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OPI: Your campaign is called Sustain Hope. What’s the specific relevance of that tagline? GG: We got a group of IP people together and asked ourselves what type of theme that’s meaningful to us would also be important to this year’s campaign and City of Hope overall? We came up with Sustain Hope for two main reasons.
One is that our business revolves around sustainability, whether it be the paper, packaging or pulp we make, or the long-term approach we take around a strong and vibrant forest. When you relate the concept of sustainability to City of Hope, there’s a considerable parallel. The NBPI has been supporting COH for many years. The last couple of fundraising campaigns – both Stephanie Dismore’s and mine – have been dominated by COVID. It would have been easy to throw in the towel in these circumstances and pass on the fundraising effort for the time being. But that’s not what happened and this is the second reason. What this industry did instead is persevere with the campaigns in difficult times to make a meaningful difference. As such, the Sustain Hope theme seemed appropriate and fitting, both from a business as well as a philanthropic point of view. OPI: You mention coronavirus and there’s obviously no escaping from it. Matt, these must have been an intense 15 months or so for you. Matt Dodd: Definitely. City of Hope – like everyone everywhere – had to turn on a dime and deal with something completely unexpected. It did that incredibly well in my view, in terms of the magnitude of what was required.
UPCOMING EVENTS 7-10 September 2021 City of Hope Industry Golf Challenge – Pebble Beach, California 6 October 2021 NBPI Memorial Golf Classic (presented by Essendant & Staples) – Harborside Int’l Golf Course, Chicago, Illinois Greg Gibson
7 October 2021 NBPI Spirit of Life Gala honouring Greg Gibson of International Paper – Navy Pier, Chicago, Illinois 17-18 October Bob Parker Memorial Golf Classic (hosted by Staples) – Kiawah Island, South Carolina
Matt Dodd
8 November Spinitar’s Annual Golf for Hope – Yorba Linda Country Club, Orange County, California
