TheLadders Blog

Ah yes, the legendary Ron Burgundy. Will Ferrel’s famous news hound from the movie Anchorman is quite the character. Not only for his perfect hair and sharp wit, but also for his mustache. Have you seen that thing? I want to be friends with it.

There are plenty of famous people and characters who are hirsute on the upper lip, but Burgundy is one of my favorites. Here at TheLadders, we may not hold a candle to most of them, but some of us are trying during November.

It’s all for Movember, which raises awareness and funds to fight prostate and testicular cancer. Basically, men grow a mustache for the month of November. In my experience, it usually prompts this exchange from friends, coworkers and relatives:

Them: “What’s going on with your face?”
Me: “Do you like it?”
Them: “God, no. You look like you belong on To Catch a Predator.”
Me: “Well, it’s for Movember. I’m raising money to fight man-cancer. You should donate.”
Them: “Oh. I’ll give you money because that’s a good cause. But you still look creepy.”

That’s the sacrifice we men make during Movember. And it’s been a huge success. Since its inception in Australia in 2003, Movember has raised $126 million to support charitable organizations such as LIVESTRONG and the Prostate Cancer Foundation.

You can help TheLadders Movember team fight cancer. Donate on our MoLadder Team Page.

Together, we can wipe out cancer once and for all. And then I’ll never grow a mustache again, I promise.

William Beard is the Associate Creative Director of Copy for TheLadders. He appreciates the irony of someone with the last name “Beard” growing a mustache. This is his current “Mo.” Needless to say, his social life is on hold this month.

When baked goods are in the office, it’s a guarantee that I’ll be close by! You can count on me to make some, eat many, and finish whatever my co-workers cannot. So when TheLadders organized a bake sale to benefit City Harvest, I signed up to help organize the event.

City Harvest is an organization that exists to end hunger in communities throughout New York City. They distribute food to many food programs and educate individuals, families, and communities on the prevention of diet-related disease. Due to Hurricane Sandy, our baking and eating efforts were delayed by two weeks. Still when the day came, I arrived with my strawberry cheesecake, an insatiable appetite, and most importantly, my equally hungry and generous colleagues. We devoured cupcakes of all sorts – Red Velvet, Guinness, and Pumpkin Spice. There was also an assortment of cookies, pumpkin bread, cream puffs, and pumpkin pie!

As a company, we raised $358 for City Harvest. To top it off, TheLadders will make a matching contribution to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund, along with all of our individual contributions, to help the victims of Hurricane Sandy.

Who ever said that a sweet tooth would only lead to cavities and a few extra pounds?

Mary Frances Usher is a Lead Talent Specialist at TheLadders.  When she isn’t sourcing top talent for recruiters on site and organizing food related events in the office, Mary can be found eating cupcakes, candy, cake, and Chipotle.  

On Monday, May 2^nd, TheLadders held its 1^st Annual Bake Sale/Bake -Off to benefit Cookies for Kids’ Cancer, a nonprofit founded in 2008 that is committed to raising money to eradicate pediatric cancer. Participants were asked to bake a favorite treat to be judged by our three highly qualified judges. Participants were judged on taste, presentation, creativity and treat name. At 1pm, with milk in hand, the judges commenced the tasting. The diversity of our team was well represented by the large selection of baked goods. From Mike LaHiff’s Cannoli Cups to Drew Menconi’s (Andy) Sharp Cakes, there was truly something for every palate.

By 5pm, sugar highs still going strong, the judges reached a final decision. In 3rd place was Holly Esposito with her Come Togethers, a delectable brownie – cookie hybrid. The runner up was Dawid Wiacek, whose cookbook worthy “Giada’s Ricotta (A Ganache with Panache) Cheesecake” scored top marks for presentation. In 1st place was Ken Carter’s Lattice Crust Mixed Berry Pie. It was nothing short of spectacular and a fan favorite.

Overall, TheLadders raised $613 – not bad for a lunch time bake sale! To top it off, GLAD has generously offered to match any donations made to Cookies for Kids’ Cancer during May. To find out more about this wonderful charity please click here.

Daniele Noto is an Office Assistant and Receptionist at TheLadders.com. She is a graduate of the University of Florida and rode horses professionally for 10 years before moving to New York.

Suzanne Havranek is a Sales Assistant at TheLadders.com. She has a degree in Psychology and Italian Language and Literature and likes really bad Italian pop music.