Today’s guest blogger is Murray Smith. Murray is the Vice President of International Sales and has worked for Mary Kay since 1983. Murray is a core volunteer with Habitat for Humanity Dallas and shares his thoughts on the importance of helping others.

Giving back to the community is not only what we have always done as a company at Mary Kay, but as employee for nearly 30 years, it is also a passion that I share with other employees and independent sales force members from around our Mary Kay world. Habitat for Humanity is just one of the many organizations out there that is trying to make our world a better place. Their mission of providing affordable shelter for others and their need for volunteers to make it happen, seemed to be the right fit for me. Their mission excited me and volunteering was the easiest thing I think ever done.

It was simple how it started. I owned a hammer. I had some basic skills. And I knew I could make a difference in some small way. Now, many homes later, I’m proud to say I am a Core Volunteer for Habitat for Humanity in Dallas.

You see being a volunteer you have the opportunity to work with others that share the same passion as you. All of those Habitat veterans were eager to share their knowledge and skills with me, for which I am now eternally grateful. I look forward to working with our Whole House Crew (named because we work on the house from the ground up) every time I go out.  We laugh, work extremely well together as a team and help each other develop skills. They helped my skills evolve.  And now, like those before me, I teach others the basic skills that all starts with lending a hand. But the reward is not what you get from volunteering, it comes from the results you see from giving. Working shoulder to shoulder with a home owner. No words need to be spoken because I can see it in their eyes every time. And that for me says it all.

Leaving my home in the early morning while still dark. Dressed in multiple layers because you really don’t know what the day’s weather will bring. A #10 breakfast combo from a familiar fast food place accompanied by two large coffees (double cream of course.) Travelling to a neighborhood that only MapQuest and Habitat volunteers can find. Taped fingers as if I was playing on the line of scrimmage for the Cowboys. Anticipating the aches and pains that follow a day of hard work and knowing that same feeling will linger into Sunday and perhaps Monday. The mild inconveniences don’t even matter because its all worth it when you see the smiles in the homeowners’ eyes.

While my thumb still has evidence of a past altercation with a hammer, I’m happy to report that this past weekend with Habitat was a huge success.  A success shared with many of my Mary Kay and Core Volunteer friends. Everyone brought their enthusiasm to lend a hand. And as I do every time, we witnessed the heartfelt thanks in the eyes of another home owner. Making a difference in someone’s life is the most rewarding hard work I do.

Today’s guest blogger is Maggie Newton. Maggie helps coordinate activities and initiatives that support Mary Kay’s corporate social responsibility programs. Maggie interned with Mary Kay in 2009 and joined the company earlier this year as the corporate social responsibility assistant.

As one of Mary Kay Inc.’s core values, the go-give spirit encompasses a dynamic team spirit of helping others and the rewards of lending a helping hand. Nowhere is this more evident than on a Mary Kay Habitat for Humanity build site.  Mary Kay Inc. has a longstanding partnership with Habitat for Humanity and we’re proud to be working on our 11th Habitat home.  Every Saturday for eight weeks, 25 Mary Kay employees volunteer from 8 AM– 4 PM doing everything from framing to decking to painting and landscaping.

As a first time volunteer I showed up on “decking day” ready to build a beautiful deck for the family where I could already envision them grilling out, getting some sun, you know - everything you do on a deck. One of the sweet Habitat core volunteers (aka one of the pros) had to explain that in fact “decking day” has nothing to do with building a sun deck and actually is part of the roofing process.  Habitat provides many learning opportunities.

While some of our volunteers are first-timers like me, many of them have worked on multiple Habitat houses and look forward to volunteering every year. I’m blown away by their selflessness, dedication and extremely hard work. They look past the grueling manual labor and see the house for what it really is – a home for a deserving family and an opportunity for that family to own and invest in something that can be passed down to their children. It’s easier to keep this end goal in mind when you’re working alongside the family who will live there. The homeowner for this current build is a single mother with two young daughters. This is a dream come true for her.  She is proud to provide her family with a safe and affordable place to call home. She’s out there every Saturday in a sea of pink Mary Kay t-shirts literally building a stable future for her children.

I look forward to the moment in less than two months when she will be presented with the keys to her new home. As she begins this new chapter in her life I hope she’ll remember her friends in pink who were a part of this journey with her. I know I will always remember feeling the rewards of lending a helping hand and our dynamic team that embraced the go-give spirit to enrich her life and the lives of her girls.