How Independence Blue Cross has Built a Legacy of Volunteerism

At Independence Blue Cross, serving the community is more than a corporate value. It’s part of the company’s identity as a leading corporate citizen and hometown health insurer for almost 90 years. This comes to life every day through the work of the IBX Blue Crew program, which supports hundreds of nonprofits serving the Philadelphia region.

Now in its 25th year, the Blue Crew has become a model for corporate volunteerism in the area. What began as an idea from a small group of IBX employees in 2001 has evolved into a cornerstone of the company’s culture and community engagement strategy, with participants collectively dedicating thousands of hours each year to volunteer efforts, from cleaning green spaces to providing food, clothing, and school supplies to those in need.

“The Blue Crew reflects the best of Independence Blue Cross. For 25 years, our associates have invested their time and talents to strengthen communities across our region. In the first half of 2026 alone, Blue Crew volunteers contributed nearly 10,000 service hours to 272 charities and nonprofits, doubling the number of hours volunteered at this point last year,” Kelly Munson, Independence Health Group president and CEO, said. “Giving back is part of our culture, and we’re proud to stand alongside our neighbors as partners in building healthier, stronger communities.”

A Record Year to Ring in a Quarter-Century of Service

As the Blue Crew celebrates a milestone anniversary, IBX is doubling down on its community-focused efforts to make 2026 a record year for engagement and impact. Led by a call from Munson for employees to increase their community engagement, participation in the Blue Crew continues to grow. “We’ve encouraged employees across the organization to join us in giving back in ways both big and small because every associate’s contribution is valued,” Steve Fera said. Fera is IBX’s executive vice president of public affairs, president of government markets, and the executive sponsor of the Blue Crew. “The response has been tremendous, and it’s inspiring to see so many colleagues stepping up to make a difference in the communities we serve.”

“Giving back is part of our culture, and we’re proud to stand alongside our neighbors as partners in building healthier, stronger communities.”

“Through June 30, 2026, we’ve seen more than 1,400 volunteers engaged and the impact is significant,” Marie Gillespie, IBX’s community affairs programs manager, said. Last year, Blue Crew members logged approximately 13,000 volunteer hours, Gillespie said, noting that they’re on track to double that figure by the end of 2026.

This year, the Blue Crew also held one of its largest volunteer events since 2019. In March, the program teamed up with the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, a longtime partner of IBX, to send 100 employees to work in the PHS Community Farm at Norristown Farm Park. Blue Crew members planted, mulched, and constructed raised beds on the 3.5-acre farm, which uses sustainable agricultural practices. The fresh produce harvested is donated to food pantries and community-based partners, like PHS’s Food As Medicine program, which provides food and nutrition education to individuals who are experiencing food insecurity.

The Blue Crew has longstanding relationships with other nonprofit organizations focused on similar concerns, including MANNA, which provides medically appropriate meals to individuals with serious illnesses, and the Share Food Program, Philadelphia’s leading food bank. “Food insecurity is closely tied to health and well-being,” Gillespie said, adding that there’s an increasing need to address the issue in our region, where it affects more than 600,000 people.

Blue Crew volunteers worked on another special project this year through their partnership with Cradles to Crayons, a nonprofit tackling children’s clothing insecurity that also provides kids with school supplies. For the organization’s annual Backpack-A-Thon, which equips kids with volunteer-packed backpacks containing back-to-school essentials, IBX associates wrote more than 5,000 cards sharing encouraging words about the upcoming school year. Beyond this initiative, the Blue Crew regularly sends volunteers to Cradles to Crayons’ Giving Factory to sort through donated clothing, footwear, diapers, and other staples before they’re distributed to families.

Partnerships Driven by Purpose

For IBX, many volunteer partnerships focus on the social and community factors that influence health, including access to nutritious food, stable housing, and support services. Successful partnerships with nonprofits and community partners are central to the Blue Crew’s mission.

In particular, IBX’s two-decade-plus relationship with Ronald McDonald House Philadelphia, which provides lodging for families with children receiving medical care in the area, shows how partnering around a shared goal can drive lasting impact.

While the Blue Crew assists with several RMH projects, it’s been instrumental to the charitable organization’s Served With Love program, regularly sending volunteers to prepare and serve chef-made breakfasts and dinners to families at RMH’s Philadelphia locations. “Through the Served With Love program, we work hand-in-hand with our friends at Ronald McDonald House to provide comfort and nourishment for families so they can focus on their children’s health,” Fera said. “Last year, the Blue Crew dedicated nearly 400 hours in support of RMH families.”

The Blue Crew became involved with the initiative in its early days and eventually helped scale the meal-service operation to feed three times as many people. “As our program has evolved, the Blue Crew has adapted and helped us evolve in how we provide dinners and breakfasts to our families,” Susan Campbell, the CEO of Ronald McDonald House Philadelphia, said. “IBX employees assisted with logistics, like determining how many volunteers would be needed per shift, creating instruction sheets for the kitchen’s new commercial equipment, and marketing the program to other corporate volunteer groups,” she said.

The IBX group has been “essential” to Served With Love’s success, Campbell said. “When we look at how much it would cost for us to run our Ronald McDonald House without volunteers, it would be unfeasible to provide these meals in the ways that we do.” The executive added that the Blue Crew is “a great example of what other companies can create” as they look for ways to engage their employees with the community and with each other, especially as more people work remotely.

Engaging Employees Around Community

Like many IBX employees, James Angelo Christopher, a clinical care quality coordinator, joined the Blue Crew when he started working at IBX to connect with colleagues while giving back. A member since 2014, he’s contributed thousands of volunteer hours as one of the Blue Crew’s most involved participants, regularly dedicating time to initiatives like Big Brothers Big Sisters, through which he mentored a student from third through eighth grade. He has also regularly served Thanksgiving and Christmas meals at the Philadelphia Senior Citizen Center.

Over the years, Christopher said he has met colleagues through the Blue Crew whom he wouldn’t otherwise have met. In recent years, he’s also seen more new employees become engaged in the program. “Volunteer participation has grown tremendously based on word-of-mouth,” he said, adding that IBX staff members are often inspired to join after seeing the Blue Crew in their own communities.

IBX makes it easy for employees to turn their passion for service into action. In addition to coordinating hundreds of volunteer opportunities each year, the company provides paid volunteer time, matches charitable donations through Blue Crew Gives, and supports employee volunteerism through its Dollars for Doers program. In 2025 alone, more than $1 million was donated to over 800 nonprofits through employee contributions and IBX matching gifts.

Inspiring the Next Generation of Volunteers

IBX’s commitment to volunteerism seeks to inspire those at the company and beyond to make an impact, including the next generation.

Blue Crew employees are encouraged to bring family members to certain volunteer events, like park cleanups in partnership with the Fairmount Park Conservancy, which IBX regularly supports. “It’s important for people to be able to bring a friend or a family member and be able to have that be part of the experience,” Gillespie said, noting that some of the most rewarding Blue Crew projects she’s worked on have allowed her to teach kids about volunteering.

Looking ahead, IBX plans to build on the Blue Crew’s legacy of service. “I hope that 25 years from now, [the Blue Crew] continues to be one of the defining programs of IBX’s mission and that it is still a central part of our culture and our purpose as a company,” Fera said. “It’s a program about neighbors helping neighbors. That’s what makes the program so special.”

For generations, Independence Blue Cross has invested in the health and well-being of the Philadelphia region through community partnerships, charitable giving, volunteerism, and public health initiatives. This investment reflects IBX’s longstanding commitment to building healthier communities and strengthening the region it proudly calls home.

Learn more at ibx.com/corporatecitizenship.

Chloé Pantazi-Wolber is a writer and editor. Her work has appeared in Business Insider, Philadelphia magazine, The Rooted Journal, Travel Bulletin, The Paris Review, and more.