“I believe our community can truly thrive only when everyone in our community can thrive.” ~John Bissell
At Greylock, we are guided by our IDEA principles – Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility – to support a workforce that reflects our community. The work includes training, product development, partnerships, education and community investments. Knowing that systemic change takes time, we have invested in a multi-year set of initiatives across our organization and across the communities we serve. We are 100% committed to this vision, which will enable our community to thrive.
Here is some of the work currently being done at Greylock:
“Be the change you wish to see in the world.”
~Mahatma Gandhi (1869 –1948)
We understand that any change, any improvements, need to start with us. Our IDEA principles support Greylock’s vision and goals of building a diverse workforce – reflecting multiple identities – and supporting the diverse communities we serve. We strive to ensure that the spaces in which we work and community members we engage are inclusive.
Highlights of our internal activities to date include:
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”
~Margaret Mead (1901-1978)
Knowing that real change is hard, we have partnered with many wonderful organizations that are similarly committed to helping our community to thrive. We believe in putting our money where our mouth is and have provided multi-year monetary support to a variety of partners supporting youth and education – such as Berkshire County Head Start and Gladys Allen Brigham Community Center; social justice organizations like NAACP, Berkshire Immigrant Center and BRIDGE; celebrating our regional heritage through W.E.B. Du Bois’ Educational Series; and promoting anti-racism initiatives like the MCLA Conference on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. We are also proud to partner with organizations that promote accessibility for all, like BCARC and CATA.
For more information on our Community Support efforts, please see Charitable Contributions.
“Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘what are you doing for others?’”
~Martin Luther King, Jr. (1929 –1968)
Greylock has long been a supporter of organizations that help our community to grow and thrive. In 2019, we doubled-down on that commitment by adding a new Community Empowerment Center within our newly remodeled Kellogg Street branch in Pittsfield.
Here is a small sampling of our efforts in the area of community development and lending: