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PayPal invites Amazon, Intel, Salesforce and Equinix to help kickoff Silicon Valley’s first-ever Interfaith Fair

10 Dec, 2022

1st-ever PayPal Interfaith Fair

By Brian Grim

PayPal’s interfaith employee resource group (ERG) ‘Believe’ hosted Silicon Valley’s first-ever Interfaith Fair at their global headquarters in San Jose, California, on Thursday. Believe leads Becky Pomerleau and Neetu Dhaliwal brought Believe members from across the country to participate, including John Huân Vũ and Jessica Aycock among many others! During the Fair, hundreds of PayPal team members visited the interactive faith booths (pictured above).

The Interfaith Fair was kicked off with virtual comments by PayPal CEO Dan Schulman, who was in Europe. Schulman emphasized the central place faith and belief has in the company’s overall diversity commitments.

Following Schulman’s welcome, an inter-company, interfaith panel moderated by PayPal’s Neetu Dhaliwal discussed the opportunities and challenges for bringing their whole selves, faith and all, to work. Discussants included Salesforce Vice President Randhir Kalsi, Amazon’s Mimi Chan, Equinix’s Husain Husna, and Intel’s Rajesh Yawantikar.

The Fair culminated with an executive Fireside Chat on the Value of Faith that I had the honor to participate in with PayPal Board member Debbie Messemer, moderated by Ellen Hayes, Vice President, Global Communities, Culture, and Change Communications at PayPal (pictured L-R below).

On Friday, as a follow-up to PayPal’s Interfaith Fair, Equinix’s FaithConnect ERG founded by Marsie Sweetland invited everyone to their Redwood City headquarters on Friday for the first annual interfaith Holiday Luncheon, also attended by Bruce Owen, Equinix’s Vice President of Employee & Community Impact, and others including Ismael Rivera.

At the Equinix luncheon, together with Kimberly Moses of ChaplainCare (pictured below right with Marsie Sweetland), I shared about the importance of recognizing the holidays of all religious communities of employees in a company.

It’s amazing to see the synergy between the religiously inclusive activities across companies in Silicon Valley, with the actions of one company stimulating similar and innovative activities in others. What wonderful examples of faith and hope in this holiday season!