Employees at MPC’s Garyville, Louisiana, refinery reach out to the community year-round, helping friends and neighbors of all ages live better lives. Following are just a few recent initiatives in which the refinery and its people took part:

Honoring our veterans

For the eighth straight year, Garyville’s HR Department and refinery volunteers honored local military veterans with a Veterans Day Celebration in St. John Parish. The refinery served as a major sponsor of the event, which featured a five-mile parade beginning in LaPlace and ending at the Southeast Louisiana War Veterans Home in Reserve.

The refinery’s fire engine and fire chief took part in the parade, along with a range of area betterment/social clubs, military and service organizations. People from all walks of life took part in honoring the veterans.

“Upon arrival at the veterans home, the refinery provided pastalaya, drinks and a hot chocolate bar,” said Community Relations Representative Aspen Murphy. “We also gave each veteran a camouflage-design towel bearing the phrase ‘Thank you for your service.’”

Sharing a good time

The Garyville refinery annually helps bring thousands together from surrounding communities for a really good time – the Andouille Festival in St. John Parish. 2019 marked the 46th year for the event, which featured food, entertainment, a beauty pageant, a 5K run and a second-line parade, along with arts/crafts/sweets vendors and more. Thousands of attendees received MPC-branded goodie bags.

With MPC as the festival’s title sponsor, Dave Foster, Garyville refinery vice president, presented a $35,000 donation to organizers, following a ceremony unveiling the festival’s new poster. “The Andouille Festival not only provides an opportunity to show our community support, but also gives us a chance to share a good time with friends and neighbors,” said Foster. “For those who may wonder, andouille is a type of specially seasoned pork sausage that is prominently featured at the event – and it’s delicious.”

The ‘giving season’

Employees’ children and grandchildren got a chance to spend some one-on-one time with Santa at the annual Children’s Christmas party sponsored by the refinery’s Rec club. Goodie bags, games, treats and pictures with St. Nick were all part of the festivities for the 500 attendees, including 290 children.

“There was no cost for the party, but we did ask that each child bring either a new, unwrapped toy or canned goods,” explains Rec Club President Jason McClung. The donations were delivered to the St. James ARC, a non-profit organization that helps individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities achieve improved quality of life.               

Putting smiles on precious faces

Partnering with the McLindon Family Foundation, MPC recently put a smile on the face of a 5-year-old named Christian, presenting the boy with a custom-made bike. “The foundation provides adaptive bikes for children with special needs, giving them a chance to take part in activities with other children, instead of just watching,” noted Garyville Community Relations Representative Aspen Murphy. To date, Garyville has sponsored three adaptive bikes for area children.