Information Technology ‘Greet, Meet and Eat’

An Experience in Diversity

This past holiday season, the Information Technology departments in Atlanta and Roanoke participated in an event they refer to as the Information Technology Greet, Meet and Eat (ITGME). The ITGME provides all of the IT staff with a chance to mingle with coworkers, get to know each other better and enjoy some delectable foods. Each of the various IT teams participating choose a theme for their decoration and the food they prepare for the celebration. The NS IT department benefits from a wide background of cultural and ethnic backgrounds from around the world and so the festivities and edibles always prove to be quite interesting and tasty. Atlanta has been participating in this event for the past two years; this was Roanoke’s first ITGME.

One of the team’s theme of ‘Holidays Around the World’ involved each staff member bringing in a dish native to their individual culture’s celebration during this time of the year. They also had a map where folks could put a pushpin to identify their country of origin. The final tally identified over 30 different national origins. Another theme was a tailgating motif where team members wore colors from their alma mater. Other examples of teams include Hawaiian Holidays, December Mardi Gras, Reggae Reindeer, and Slice of Americana. Another tradition of the ITGME has been that some of the teams collected donations for charitable organizations such as Toys for Tots, Rescue Mission, Ronald McDonald House, Salvation Army, and United Way to name a few.

A diversity of entertainment has also been offered by some of the teams. There has been holiday music being played on keyboard, music played by a string quartet, putt-putt games, trivia challenges, and even dancing elves projected on a screen.

One of the biggest demonstrations of diversity is the creativity displayed by so many groups comprised of primarily technical staff. It gives insight into talents possessed by individuals and groups within IT that may not otherwise be recognized.