10 things we’re grateful for and ways we give back

“Be grateful and give back.” It’s one of T&C’s Tenets & Convictions and we know without our clients and team members, we wouldn’t be able to do and experience so many things in this PR life. We like to show our gratitude by giving back to the community that has given us so much, from our humble beginnings to today, 10 years later. In honor of our 10th anniversary this year, we put together 10 things we are grateful for and ways our employees give back in their own communities.Be Grateful:

1. We’re grateful that we live in beautiful places that support growing tourism industries. With offices in Anchorage and Houston, we are no strangers to tourism. In fact, we’ve had the pleasure of working with the Alaska Tourism Industry Association since 2000. Through all of Alaska’s economic ups and downs, Alaska tourism has remained a strong force in the state and continues to grow. In summer 2018, Alaska welcomed 2,026,300 travelers and it was the fourth consecutive summer of growth: Volume increased by 7%, 4%, 4%, then 5%, from 2014 to 2018. The Houston tourism industry is also quickly growing. As one of the largest cities in the country, Houston regularly hosts large-scale events like the NCAA Final Four and NFL Super Bowl. In 2018, despite the fact that no new events came to town and much of the city was still recovering from one of the nation's most catastrophic natural disasters, Hurricane Harvey, tourism numbers increased to 22.3 billion visitors. As thought leaders in the tourism industry, T&C regularly works alongside organizations like Visit Houston and the Galveston Chamber to share its expertise and help small businesses in the industry thrive.
2. We’re grateful for our clients that support our creative process and trust us to come up with big ideas that work. From big events and press trips to diving into the world of digital, check out some of the work we’ve pulled off for our clients.
3. We are grateful for the local and national reporters we work with who work tirelessly to deliver news that matters to their audiences. We are also grateful for the news organizations that we rely on to provide accurate news from our communities. No matter how much the media landscape changes, from printed papers to online-only outlets, good journalism will always remain an important part of our lives. Support local news by purchasing a subscription to your favorite outlets!
4. We are grateful to live and work in places rich in diversity and for members from every community taking time to educate us on how to be more responsible citizens.
5. We are grateful for a strong, creative community. We are a small agency and there are many other small agencies in our community that serve as both our competition and our friends. Having so much talent around pushes us to always pursue bigger and better things than we dreamed of yesterday.

Give back:

1. We give back by volunteering with organizations like Covenant House Alaska and the Houston Rodeo that are doing great things in our communities. Whether it’s wrapping Christmas presents for families in need, sleeping outside to raise money to support homeless youth or plunging into freezing cold water for a good cause, our staff loves to get involved with local organizations that are making a difference.
2. We give back by supporting local news. We work hard to foster relationships with journalists, we support the Alaska Press Club and we purchase subscriptions to local papers to do our part in keeping traditional media alive and well.
3. We give back by partnering with local agencies and supporting other small businesses in our community when we can. We do our best to always utilize local vendors and encourage others to do the same.
4. We give back by being loyal and doing things together. We pick each other up when we fall on hard times, we come together to coordinate meal trains, we lift each other up in every endeavor and we participate in community events together like the Women’s Run and Polar Plunge.
5. We give back by spreading the knowledge that we’ve gained. T&Cers speak to UAA journalism and communications students and anyone else interested in the public relations industry and we love to present to small groups on best practices in media relations, social media and more.

BONUS: We are grateful for the culture of family that T&C leadership, starting with our president and CEO, have fostered for all of us. Some highlights of T&C culture include the bold family leave policy (family first is more than just talk around here), the agency’s culture of friendship (who says work friends can’t be best friends?) and endless opportunity. T&C currently has multiple satellite offices that allow our staff to bring in new ideas from all over the country!Keep following along with us for more top 10 lists while we celebrate our 10th anniversary this year.