How to celebrate Memorial Day by giving back.

Lands’ End loves finding ways to give back. For us, Memorial Day is another opportunity to show our support by taking the time to get involved. From community events to veterans’ organizations, homeless shelters to animal shelters, we’re all in. We’ve built homes, donated equipment, provided material for quilts and raised countless dollars in hopes of finding cures for diseases that affect our friends and families. When our employees volunteer, Lands’ End honors the time they give by matching their fundraising efforts with our contributions program. We know you love giving back, too. So, in honor of Memorial Day, we thought: Why not share our ideas with you? Here’s how we’re lending a hand.

When it comes to giving back, what is Lands’ End’s mission?

Our mission is to help create “a more comfortable world.” We care about our employees, our community, and our planet. That’s why Lands’ End is committed to a diverse and inclusive culture for our employees and customers. We’re also helping to create a more sustainable future by minimizing our impact on the earth, one step at a time. We’ve created The Comfort Fund to focus our corporate giving. We are supporting charities and organizations that focus on one of the three basic needs for human comfort: food, shelter and safety.

What is The Comfort Fund?

Here at Lands’ End, we believe there are three basic needs, each of which are required to create human comfort. Those basic needs are food, shelter and safety. The Lands’ End Comfort Fund supports organizations who help fulfill at least one of these elements. We’ve partnered with the Skin Cancer Foundation to empower people to take a more proactive approach to daily sun protection. Our work with the Breast Cancer Research Foundation helps to fund over 275 researchers in 14 different countries around the globe. Plus, we’ve partnered with One Warm Coat to provide outerwear to those in need free of charge. This Memorial Day, you could challenge yourself to form a new charitable partnership of your own. With the holiday marked as a yearly reminder to pitch in, just think of all you’d have to be proud of five or ten years from now.

Does Lands’ End recycle?

As part of our ongoing efforts to become a zero landfill company, Lands’ End launched an innovative recycling program. Current recycling and waste management activities within the company include a comprehensive program addressing paper products, maintenance operations, electronics, disposal of non-recyclables, water management, plus corrugated cardboard, aluminum cans, glass and plastics. It allows us to avoid adding to the ever-growing problem of overflowing landfills. This effort has many layers and is happening at all levels of our company. A great example of this can be seen in our scraps. We’ve proudly turned over 262 tons (and counting) of unused materials and apparel into usable goods like insulation, bedding, acoustics, and home furnishings. Purchasing paper products made from recycled materials is another significant component of the larger picture of Lands’ End’s recycling initiative. We’ve learned even small changes can make a huge difference. For example, our main campus in Dodgeville, Wisconsin, began composting. Today we compost roughly four tons of kitchen waste and coffee grounds per year. On Memorial Day, ask yourself how you can reduce, reuse or recycle things you’d usually throw in the trash can. Together, we’ll be working toward a more sustainable future for us all.

Does Lands’ End still help maintain lakes in Madison, Wisconsin?

Our strong nautical and sustainability heritage makes our partnership with the Clean Lakes Alliance (CLA) in Dane County, and the City of Madison Parks a natural fit. We work to make a difference in maintaining the water quality of area lakes‚ streams and wetlands in the Yahara River Watershed. Lands’ End team members regularly participate in CLA-sponsored events‚ including annual trash cleanup days and projects to remove invasive species. In doing so, we help protect the shoreline and water quality of Lake Waubesa. Lands' End also supports the CLA-sponsored winter festival, Frozen Assets, in February near Lake Mendota. The three-day event allows residents and visitors to enjoy the weather by participating in winter sports or family activities.

Can you help Lands’ End give back?