It would be easy for students on their way to Springdale Elementary School on North Hollywood Street to not think much about the adults working inside Buckman offices and research centers on McLean Boulevard and Chelsea Avenue in North Memphis.

Buckman International employees were recently honored for work in the community.

The international headquarters of Buckman is a familiar part of the streetscape in North Memphis and is less than two miles from Springdale Elementary. And the workers may not ever drive past Springdale on their way to and from work.

But when Buckman executives honored employees last week who volunteer time and material, not just at the Memphis headquarters, but at other locations around the world, there was the principal of Springdale Elementary – JeVon Marshall, with a different kind of class.

Like his children, they wore uniforms – green shirts marking them as honored employees.

Buckman has been involved for a long time at Springdale. The backpacks with school supplies that each kindergarten and first grade student got at the start of the current school year was the result of a more coordinated effort by the company.

“Everything they needed to go back to school to get them going the first month of school including a nice backpack to go with it,” Marshall said. “That allowed parents the freedom to work on other things and not have to stress over, ‘I need, I need, I need for my child.’”

More importantly, at school registration each parent of those students got a letter telling them not to worry about the supplies, that those would be provided.

“This is something that we are really working to do around the globe to make sure that what we are doing in our communities is focused, impactful,” said Buckman board chairwoman Kathy Buckman Gibson. “And to the extent that there are opportunities to have coordinated global efforts, we’re now at the point where we are identifying global efforts.”

Later this year, the company will begin a coordinated blood donation network, which Gibson called a “milestone.” And the key won’t be a “one size fits all” model.

“We’re letting each of our local councils determine how best to plug in to whatever makes sense in their community,” Gibson said of the blood donations. “We’re working on either coordinating with other businesses to have onsite donations or to take our associates to hospitals.”

Donations and efforts for disaster relief for areas of the world where Buckman operates are being coordinated with the Red Cross and Red Crescent because it works best for employees to give quickly.

“We leave it up to each manager to work with their associate who wants to get involved,” Gibson said of the logistics of employee involvement.

The size of Buckman operations varies from country to country and takes in a wide variety of jobs.

The Springdale backpacks were packed in two sessions to accommodate manufacturing associates on two shifts who volunteered.

“You want your associates engaged,” Gibson said. “But that often means they have to feel connected beyond the day-to-day work. This is one of the ways they can have a greater connection with us as an organization.”

Marshall, who worked at FedEx before becoming a principal, is aware of the hesitancy that some workers might have – as well as the effect of getting past it.

“It’s hard to break that first barrier,” he said. “Once you make that first step, it’s a release, a burden is lifted.”

And the impact translates to children.

“At that moment you had parents, teachers, children, community volunteers all in one location together for children,” Marshall said. “The children were able to see all of these adults for them – coming together for a common cause – no one arguing, no one mad.”

Gibson said her employees also benefited in the exchange with 5-year-old students.

“They are still so full of wonderment and joy,” she said. “It helps you step back and step out of the day-to-day stuff and re-evaluate and remember what’s important.”