ENGLEWOOD, Colo.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--DISH employees from around the country recently joined together for the inaugural ‘DISH Day of Service,’ a companywide day of volunteering and community outreach. DISH Day of Service is part of the company’s corporate citizenship program, DISH Cares, which promotes community engagement through employee volunteerism.

More than 1,000 volunteers took part in 100 events across 28 states, making it the largest volunteering initiative in DISH’s history. The groups supported 80 different nonprofits and a variety of causes, including health, education, hunger, poverty, and the environment.

“It is truly remarkable what the group from DISH was able to accomplish in a few hours,” said Justin Kruger, Executive Director of Project Helping in Denver. “The volunteers demonstrated teamwork and enthusiasm throughout the day, and we appreciate all of their contributions to our organization.”

Employees from all areas of the business participated in DISH Day of Service, including technicians, call center agents, sales agents, corporate employees, and senior executives. Together with their friends and families, DISH employees renovated four schools, cleaned up 20 parks and natural areas, packed and provided meals for 25 different food banks and assisted hundreds of families supported by Ronald McDonald House and Habitat for Humanity.

“DISH Day of Service provides a way for our employees to work together outside the office to improve our communities,” said Mike McClaskey, EVP and Chief Human Resources Officer. “It was inspiring to see so many employees get involved in this initiative and make a meaningful impact.”

While the first DISH Day of Service officially took place on Saturday, September 26, volunteering occurred over several weeks to accommodate employees that serve customers on weekends. During that time, the DISH volunteers spent thousands of hours planting trees, feeding the hungry, building homes, caring for rescued animals, supporting at-risk youth, assisting the elderly and giving back to their local communities.

A video recap of DISH Day of Service can be found here.

About DISH Cares

DISH Cares, the corporate citizenship program of DISH Network, is designed to serve the communities where DISH operates. Launched in 2014, the DISH Cares program aims to protect the environment through sustainable business practices, promote employee engagement in the community and provide emergency telecommunications services to aid in disaster relief efforts.

About DISH

DISH Network Corp. (NASDAQ:DISH), through its subsidiaries, provides approximately 13.932 million pay-TV subscribers, as of June 30, 2015, with the highest-quality programming and technology with the most choices at the best value. Subscribers enjoy a high definition lineup with more than 200 national HD channels, the most International channels and award-winning HD and DVR technology. DISH Network Corporation is a Fortune 250 company. Visit www.dish.com.