ABOVE: Kristian Cosme, recipient of the AT&T Community Impact Award. (Screenshot from YouTube)
ORLANDO | A Central Florida call center manager was awarded $10,000 to donate to a charity of his choice for his volunteerism by employer AT&T and chose to donate it to the Zebra Coalition in Orlando.
Kristian Cosme, who is an out and proud member of Orlando’s LGBTQ community, has worked for AT&T for 17 years. Cosme worked through the AT&T Aspire Mentoring Program to create mentoring opportunities with various organizations which led to him being named one of the finalists for the AT&T Community Impact Award.
As one of six finalists companywide, Cosme was granted $5,000 from the AT&T Foundation for the charity of his choice. The additional $5,000 was granted after AT&T employees from around the nation voted for Cosme as the award winner.
“The only way that we can make the world a better place is to be involved with it. If we’re not there for the world, it’s not going to be there for us,” Cosme said of his volunteering efforts in a statement.
The AT&T Foundation created the award to celebrate employees who go above and beyond to make their communities thrive through volunteerism.
The Zebra Coalition is a Central Florida nonprofit organization dedicated to helping LGBTQ youth, ages 13-24, with issues such as homelessness, bullying, abuse and isolation from their families. They provide a variety of programs like mental health counseling, housing and meetups for young people in need.
Watch all of the AT&T Community Impact Award nominee videos at AT&T Together’s YouTube channel, and for more information on the Zebra Coalition, visit ZebraYouth.org.
