Madison Heights

Casual Dress Day benefits local and national charities

By Andy Kozlowski
C & G Staff Writer

MADISON HEIGHTS — In many organizations, dressing well is part of the office culture, but some will relax the rules a bit — at a price.

It’s not unheard of in the business sector for employees to pitch in a few bucks for the right to dress casually, raising money for internal employee efforts.

For non-uniform staff in Madison Heights, this means a contribution of $2 for the privilege to dress in comfy but respectable clothes on Fridays. The opportunity also exists on Wednesdays during the summer months, plus Special Casual Days throughout the year.

This is good for the employee, of course, but what’s good for everyone is that the money benefits the community, going to a variety of local and national charities.

The program dates back to 1999, when City Manager Jon Austin created a committee that would designate the charities they would give to each year. Around $35,000 has been collected and distributed in this way. In addition, another $1,800 has been collected over the past three years to help city employees struck by family and medical tragedies.

“It’s been a very successful program,” Austin said. “It also raises awareness for these charities. The employees have an opportunity when we do this to write an additional check for the groups, and we see that.”

He notes that employees can’t dress too casually, though. No worn-out or revealing clothes are allowed, or clothes with logos or messages. Well, except for ones that say, “City of Madison Heights.”

According to an annual report from the Casual Day Charity Committee, 2011 saw checks totaling nearly $2,000 sent out to groups, including the Alzheimer’s Association, American Heart Association, Gateway Counseling Center, Habitat for Humanity, Muscular Dystrophy Association and Polycystic Kidney Disease Foundation.

Money also went to Madison Heights agencies and such events as the Holiday Tree Lighting, the Memorial Day Parade, Youth Assistance, Goodfellows, Intermediate Women’s Club Warriors, 10 Mile Free Will Baptist Food Bank and the library’s English as a Second Language program.

Some groups have been continuously supported from the start, like the Goodfellows, which have received more than $4,600 to date. Two-thirds of all donations over the years have gone to local causes, keeping the focus close to home.

The library’s English as a Second Language program received the largest donation in 2011, at more than $500.

Sally Arrivee, head reference librarian, is chair of the Casual Day Charity Committee, and advocates helping the ESL program. She noted the substantial immigrant population in Madison Heights and how the money will help the library purchase materials to assist people in becoming American citizens, learning to speak English and preparing for the Test of English as a Foreign Language exam.

The chosen languages were Arabic, Mandarin and Cantonese; they hope to add Vietnamese next. Many purchases were DVDs and CDs to replace deteriorating VHS and cassette tape formats.

It’s a win-win situation for everyone.

“Half of the people will wear jeans and a normal top they might wear with a nice pair of slacks or a skirt — it’s not like they run around dressed like slobs,” Arrivee said. “And quite frankly, when you’re at the library crawling around on your knees, I’d rather be doing it in a pair of jeans than a nice pair of wool slacks.”

You can reach C & G Staff Writer Andy Kozlowski at akozlowski@candgnews.com or at (586)498-1104.