Download the 2012 CSR Report

MCFA Salutes Its Veterans
Camaraderie is the word that comes to mind when you sit in a room full of war veterans. Stories are exchanged, often with a laugh that has somehow emerged so many years later from what was a very honorable but horrific time in these veterans’ lives. They seem to have a lot in common regardless of their length of service, the military branch they joined or the war they fought.

At the 2011 Veterans Day breakfast, held annually at MCFA, about 20 of MCFA’s service men and women gathered to be honored by fellow employees.

A buffet breakfast and refreshments provided the backdrop for the group, while Corporate Planning Vice President Ken Barina shared the company’s pride in employing veterans from the U.S. Army, Marines, Navy and Air Force.

Run / Walk Team
MCFA’s run/walk team hit the pavement in its first event of the year – a Memorial Day run / walk sponsored by the Houston Astros^®. The goal of the team – to encourage physical fitness and corporate fellowship – was supported by nearly 50 employees who showed up in their MCFA T-shirts and running shoes. The team intends to participate in an annual Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure event to raise money for breast cancer research.

Soccer Field Dedication
MCFA set aside a plot of land on the property to build a soccer field in 2011, following a surprise donation of nearly 70 truckloads of dirt from the City of Houston. With the road bordering the west side of MCFA’s headquarters under construction for a lengthy time, the city donated the dirt at no cost to MCFA. The contractor on the construction job pitched in and had his crew spread and level the field for free as well. The field now provides a healthy outlet for employees during the day.

Weight Watchers At Work
After three heart attacks and a quadruple bypass, Steve Barricklow wasn’t what you’d call the picture of health. Toward the end of 2010, during MCFA’s annual health assessment for employees, the 60-year-old was told he was out of shape, borderline diabetic and frankly overweight, a fact his doctor also pointed out during his semiannual visit to the cardiologist.

Barricklow, MCFA’s senior manager of product purchasing, decided it was time for a change. He joined MCFA’s Weight Watchers at Work program, a 17-week program that offers weekly on-site meetings at MCFA, where participants learn how to lose weight using a point system to track their food consumption.

Weight Watchers at Work is flexible and designed for people who sometimes give in to their food cravings. An average of 50 MCFA employees enroll in the Weight Watchers at Work program each year. Many are newcomers and a lot are recurring participants with a desire to reach their goal weight.

Sarah Andaverde, manager of recruiting and development at MCFA, attributes her success in the program to the fact that she can attend the weekly meetings at MCFA and utilize the program’s online tools, a sentiment Barricklow shares. “I would have never done it had it not been here at work,” he said. “MCFA is very supportive of the program and its employees.”

The program teaches you how to eat healthier, what size portions to eat and gives you an opportunity to share your success with weekly weigh-ins and recognition for hitting your goal. Weight Watchers is a great program if given a chance, Barricklow said. “It turned out to be one of the best things I could have done to regain my health.”

Two-Year Study Results. Weight Watchers encourages clients to focus on steady, small weekly weight-loss rates of no more than 1 to 2 pounds per week. A January 2005 study published in the “Journal of the American Medical Association” compared Weight Watchers to other popular weight loss programs. Over a 24-month period, Weight Watchers members who regularly weighed in at meetings and stayed on the plan lost an average 5 1/2 pounds per year.

MCFA’s Weight Watchers program has been offered to employees for five years and is part of the company’s overall commitment to employee health and wellness.

Health Initiatives
MCFA’s wellness program and annual health initiatives expanded to a variety of levels in 2011 with the goal of increasing awareness while producing healthier, less stressed employees. Opportunities included:
• Biometric Screenings And Health Risk Assessments – Employees underwent screenings in 2011 during a health risk assessment to identify problem areas and increase awareness of their general level of health.
• Flu Shots – With various strains of the flu showing up from year to year, MCFA has always taken a proactive stance in protecting its employees. Onsite flu shots are offered annually in October.
• Lunch And Learn Presentations – The Kelsey-Seybold team, in conjunction with Cigna Healthcare, offered employees the opportunity to discuss common health issues over lunch. Employees learned more about topics like high blood pressure while listening to guest speakers from the medical field.
• 10K Steps Walking Program – A six-week program was implemented in partnership with Kelsey-Seybold that began with a quick check of height, weight and waist measurement along with a blood pressure reading. Each participant was given a pedometer and walking journal to help track the number of steps each day. Kelsey-Seybold provided periodic checks via its mobile health kiosk to help employees see the impact a structured walking program can have on overall health.