The Cystic Fibrosis Kick Off

Hal Blackman • April 3, 2019

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, the American poet and educator once said, “Give what you have. To someone, it may be better than you dare to think.” When I was loading trucks and working three jobs, I always made it my business to give back. We all need to give back. Trust me. Every year we have a fund-raising drive for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, and every year I am blown away by your generosity. When you help others who are less fortunate, you will get this amazing feeling that you have helped another child to live one day longer. The donations we raise for research will eventually put an end to this horrid disease that affects so many kids.

Great Strides is the main vehicle for raising donations for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. Over 125,000 people participate in walks across the country including IST. We currently have over 130 registered walkers. Our goal is to get 200 walkers and have each walker raise $200 in donations. So far, we are off to a good start. Many kudos to Lori Mitchum, Vice President of Administration, who does an amazing job every year in orchestrating this annual campaign for IST.

Our fundraising drive is still underway. We’re almost half way to our goal for this year:

Last year we had 44 IST city teams and 242 registered walkers throughout the U.S. who helped raise over $25,000! This year we are striving to beat last year’s accomplishment. The top five fundraisers get to choose one of four prizes including an iPad Mini 2, Beats Headphones, a Playstation 4 and a $300 Amex gift card plus a free day of PTO! Very cool.

I have no doubt that someday we will find a cure for this disease and many other diseases that exist. In the United States more than 30,000 people are living with cystic fibrosis.

Approximately 1,000 new cases of CF are diagnosed each year. More than half of the CF population is age 18 or older. We have conquered smallpox, malaria, diphtheria and typhoid fever. We will also conquer cystic fibrosis. Dale Carnegie once said, “Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all.” So we will keep on trying and keep on giving until all diseases are eradicated. Thank you all for your kindness and generosity. 

Hanging with Hal

Supporting Sacrifice and Giving Back

By Hal Blackman • November 21, 2019
Chester Nimitz, fleet admiral of the United States Navy, played a major role during World War II and the battle for the Pacific on land, sea, and air. He once said, “Some of the best advice I’ve had comes from junior officers and enlisted men.” This month we observe Veterans Day and pay tribute to all American veterans, living or dead, but especially those living veterans who served during war or peacetime. I am proud of both of my sons who graduated from the Naval Academy and served with honor. I am proud of all of our men and women who served, and especially those who are now employees of IST . Thank you for your service! As part of our way of giving back, IST is involved with several programs to help both veterans and military spouses on the career front. Through the efforts of Hannah Wells and Sydney Ayers we developed the GEMS program which stands for “Gainful Employment for Military Spouses.” This program is designed to hire military spouses. With our operations in 40+ cities nationally and nearly 2,000 positions, this program is a perfect match since military spouses are often transferred to different parts of the country. Since IST is completely standardized in our field operations, employees can transfer to different sites without skipping a beat. The IST’s GEMS program offers military spouses flexible, portable, and secure careers no matter where military life takes them. We have hired seven military spouses throughout the country since we started the GEMS program.
IST's GEMS Program

IST's GEMS Program

By Hal Blackman • March 20, 2019
Introducing IST's GEMS Program and the Military Spouse Employment Partnership Program.