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As we celebrated our 100th anniversary throughout 2019, we marked the milestone with a number of special community projects and initiatives
Community service has been an integral part of Baird's mission for a full century. As we celebrated our 100th anniversary throughout 2019, we marked the milestone with a number of special community projects and initiatives. When members of our worldwide team gathered in Milwaukee in June for our centennial celebration, we worked together to fill 3,000 backpacks with personal care items for families in need in partnership with United Way. The backpacks were distributed to organizations in Milwaukee and eight other cities, including the Gary Comer Youth Center in Chicago and the Center for Women and Families in Louisville.
Baird Gives Back Week, which marked its 10th anniversary in 2019, brings our associates, families and friends together for collaborative volunteering opportunities. 2019 was a record year for this initiative. Nearly 2,200 Baird volunteers from more than 100 Baird offices participated, contributing more than 7,800 hours of service. Their efforts benefited 179 organizations and nonprofits globally.
To share our 100th anniversary celebration with our communities, we launched a special initiative called "100 Days of Giving." One hundred associates who volunteered during Baird Gives Back Week, including individuals from our U.S., European and Asia offices, were selected to direct $1,000 from Baird Foundation to the nonprofit of their choice. Many chose to support causes they care deeply about, such as Operation Gratitude, which provides care packages for American military personnel, and children's hospitals in Michigan, Wisconsin, Tennessee and Washington state.
More than 1,000 of our associates are active members of our Associate Resource Groups (ARGs). In addition to providing opportunities for personal and professional growth, our ARGs support Baird's commitment to inclusion and diversity and foster a stronger sense of community both within Baird and in our communities. Our ARGs are devoted to multicultural diversity, veterans, community involvement, women, millennials and LGBTQ causes and also support nonprofits in the communities where our associates live and work.
Baird Foundation makes matching and charitable gifts to enhance our associates' personal donations, with a focus in the areas of health and human services, education, the arts and diversity. It also makes donations to organizations where our associates are actively involved. In 2019, Baird Foundation donated $3.4 million to qualified nonprofits, including more than $1.1 million to match associates' personal giving.