The (Slightly) Serious Benefits of Company Sports Teams
Five reasons a company sports team benefits employee wellness and creates a company culture that people love to work for.
Five reasons a company sports team benefits employee wellness and creates a company culture that people love to work for.
PLAY creates friendships…and lives!
Levi Cooperman is the co-founder of FreshBooks, that little Canadian start-up that achieved unicorn status a year or so ago, and he credits playing with JAM for his marriage and beautiful two daughters.
Here is the story, in Levi’s own words:
“It was the summer of 2003 when Naama and I first started playing ultimate frisbee together with JAM, and that team sparked our relationship.
I believe it was a Tuesday or Thursday night team, and I think it was one of the first iterations of our team called Banana Cream Pie. I invited Naama out to play and I don’t think she had ever played ultimate before then.
We obviously hit it off on the field and, of course, even more so when socializing at the pubs over nachos and beers after the games.
We started dating that fall and were never apart from that point forward. We got married in the summer of 2007 and now have a family of four. I’ve always been a loyal player and a big fan of JAM!”
In addition to playing with JAM on a personal level, Levi, and his team at FreshBooks, have always cared deeply about the culture and their people finding ways to integrate play into the workplace.
Over the last decade, FreshBooks has provided its staff with the opportunity to play a variety of sports like dodgeball, floor hockey, and softball on company teams in our JAM sports leagues. And they have also participated in several JAM virtual team-bonding events like Scavenger Hunts, Trivia and Survey Says.
It is no surprise that FreshBooks has been recognized with many awards over the years including making the prestigious Canada’s Top 100 Employers list, being certified as a Great Place to Work – Canada, and being named to Greater Toronto’s Top Employers list.
This intentional commitment to play has provided FreshBooks with a great opportunity for their team to strengthen friendships in the workplace, and it helped Levi find the love of his life!
Levi’s story is not unique. Over the last 27 years, thousands of marriages and beautiful relationships have formed, and in turn, babies have been born, thanks to people connecting through play with JAM over the last 27 years!
Wanna feel all the feels of more of JAM’s love stories? Read more from a sampling of our favorites here: www.kristiherold.com/lovestories
And if you know someone who met their love match playing with JAM (formerly Sport & Social Club) please share in the comments below – we would love to hear more!