Like many companies in the post-9/11 economy, Woods & Associates, a successful Seattle employment agency, experienced a noticeable downturn in business. Clients were hiring fewer employees, resulting in fewer job placements for the agency. For two months, everyone at Woods reduced their hours to 80 percent. Although the company was able to repay the income lost during that period, all raises were postponed and annual bonuses were canceled.

But even in the face of such uncertainty, the staff at Woods & Associates decided to keep their annual $5,000 commitment to the Hutchinson Center.

"The entire staff felt it was extremely important to support all of our nonprofit friends," said founder Sarah Woods. "We figured that if our revenues dipped, then nonprofit organizations, like Fred Hutchinson, needed our donations more than ever."

This generous attitude is nothing new to Woods — it's part of the company's values. The firm treats its employees and clients more like family and friends rather than colleagues. And that caring outlook extends to charitable donations as well. Woods & Associates has made annual gifts to many nonprofits throughout its 15-year history. Since 1995, the company has made annual $5,000 donations to the center.

"Each of us has been touched by cancer in our lives," Woods said. "The Hutchinson Center's research must go on no matter what the temporary state of the economy is."

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