HanesBrands (asi/59528) has been honored by the United Way after pledging $1.97 million this year to the nonprofit’s Forsyth County chapter in North Carolina.

The United Way awarded Hanes with its Spirit of North Carolina Award for campaign excellence – the supplier’s 10th consecutive Spirit Award. The Winston-Salem, NC-based company has earned 11 Spirit Awards over the past 12 years. This year, Hanes was one of 30 organizations in the state to be highlighted and one of five companies in Forsyth County to receive the Spirit Award.

In addition to praising HanesBrands’ use of special events to engage and educate employees, the United Way also spotlighted the role of Hanes’ leadership team in promoting a culture of philanthropy and community support.

“HanesBrands demonstrated excellence in its United Way campaign, but also a strong philanthropic culture and community engagement,” said Cindy Gordineer, UWFC president and CEO, in a press release. “HanesBrands received high marks (in the Spirit Award selection process) for overall organizational volunteer culture, collaborative work with United Way, employee engagement and participation.”

A longtime supporter of the United Way, Hanes has contributed more than $25.5 million to United Way agencies since 2006.

To support employee volunteerism, Hanes granted paid time off to nearly 400 headquarters employees in 2017, urging them to participate in the company’s Day of Caring at 13 local community agencies. Employee volunteers contributed more than 1,600 volunteer hours, performing tasks at the agencies that included landscaping, painting and administrative duties.