More than 500 colleagues across Nixon Peabody came together for our Week of Service event, a firmwide tradition uniting our people in collaborative service projects and pro bono activities to serve local communities where we live and work. This year, we joined forces with local community organizations to mobilize around increasing equity, access, and opportunity—which are core to the mission of our Pro Bono & Social Impact program. From sorting donations for families in need to serving meals to homeless military veterans—we were proud to stand by our non-profit partners and make a meaningful difference in myriad ways.
We centered our projects this year around the theme of housing and homelessness. As home to one of the nation’s largest Affordable Housing legal practices, this focus lives at the heart of our firm’s day-to-day work. We understand that stable, safe housing is the cornerstone of strong communities, and we strive towards this goal through the work we do for clients and the service we provide to neighbors who experience housing instability.
We’re very passionate about this work we do to empower the places we call home. That passion shines brightly throughout the year, especially during the Week of Service.
In line with that theme, our Week of Service projects addressed various needs emanating from housing instability and homelessness. One new addition to this year’s campaign was our firmwide coat drive for One Warm Coat—a nationwide nonprofit that provides free coats to children and adults in need. Many colleagues chipped in to “warm” more than 3,900 people this winter.
A snapshot of Nixon Peabody Week of Service projects includes:
- Hosting a food drive and sorting donation boxes for the Food Pantries for the Capital District
- Teaming up with 2Life Communities to host a fall festival for residents of the Boston-based senior affordable housing development
- Partnering with Bet Tzedek, a Los Angeles-based nonprofit human and poverty rights organization, to host an in-person legal clinic helping veterans draft advance life planning documents
- Volunteering with NP client Brightstar Community at its house in Rochester, which serves women survivors of sex trafficking, prostitution, abuse, and addiction
- Stocking the shelves of NP client Jubilee Housing’s Elf Store—a holiday pop-up shop for children of Jubilee’s affordable housing communities in Washington, DC.
NP Impact Week of Service aligns with our firmwide Social Impact Strategy, through which we pool our time, resources, and talent to maximize the positive impact we’re creating in our communities. Our social impact plan encompasses a broad range of coordinated efforts that empower people in need, including pro bono service, board memberships, charitable giving, volunteering, and impact lawyering. As a law firm, the social impact purpose that we find in our legal work is central to who we are as lawyers and what inspires us at NP.
The Week of Service embodies the kind of philanthropic culture that characterizes our firm. It was so heartwarming to see everyone roll up their sleeves in celebration of that giving spirit.
