One Ask. One Evening. 350 Kids Fed.

It started with a couple hundred dollars and a few silent-auction baskets. It ended with $61,030 raised in a single evening, every elementary school in the district covered, and nearly 350 kids guaranteed food on the weekends for the coming school year.

The person behind that ask is Jamie Noel, ClearOne Advantage's Senior Director of Revenue Operations. Community service isn't in her job description. It's just who she is.

"Some people like to golf. I like to fundraise."

That instinct to find the need and figure out how to fill it is what led Jamie to bring ClearOne Advantage into her support of Blessings in a Backpack – Huron Valley, a chapter of the national nonprofit that makes sure kids have enough to eat over the weekend, when school nutrition programs aren't running.

The Sticker Shock of Need Next Door

Jamie found Blessings in a Backpack the way most of her community work starts: through a personal connection. The Huron Valley coordinator was a fellow team mom on her son's football team. The more Jamie learned, the more the scale of the need in her own district hit home.

“It was very much a sticker shock to me. If the need is great here, what about nationwide? This problem is probably far more exacerbated than what we’re currently understanding.”

In Michigan, kids get free breakfast and lunch at school. But that support ends Friday afternoon. Blessings in a Backpack fills the gap until Monday: backpacks sent home each week with shelf-stable, ready-to-eat food kids can prepare themselves. As a mom of three, Jamie got involved and then thought about how to bring her employer along.

The Ask That Became a Sponsorship

She didn't walk in with a polished proposal. She started with what she had: some unused items, a wine fridge, a basketball hoop, and a cause she believed in.

“I said, I’m going to put together some silent auction baskets. Do you mind throwing me a couple hundred bucks as filler?”

She got more than she asked for. Leadership wanted to understand the mission and how it connected to the company's values, and the conversation grew.

“We were just like, no, we’re not just going to do baskets. Tell us how we can sponsor this thing.”

ClearOne Advantage came on as Dinner Sponsor for “A Magical Night of Comedy,” an evening of stand-up from local and national comedians who donated their time, followed by silent and live auctions. Jamie and her family volunteered, donated items, and worked the floor.

The result from that one evening: $61,030 raised, the program expanded to all eight elementary schools in the district, 13,224 weekend meals provided, and nearly 350 children supported for the year ahead.

What Care Actually Looks Like

Jamie draws a quiet, direct line between ClearOne's work and this kind of community involvement. Debt and food insecurity aren't the same thing, she's careful to say. But they share something: asking for help can feel embarrassing, and showing up without judgment matters in both.

"It feels good when you can do something for somebody else that maybe couldn't do it for themselves."

Jamie Noel — Sr. Director of Revenue Operations, ClearOne Advantage

That's care in action. Not a value statement. A decision.

Start Where You Are

Jamie's advice for anyone who wants to get involved is simple: look locally first. The need in your own neighborhood will probably surprise you. Find what you're passionate about. Show up before you ask. And then ask.

“You never get a no if you don’t ask the question. You can’t save the world in a day. But every little bit helps, and you never know whose day you’re turning around.”