Donations exceed $5,000 to fund wish for Oklahoma child
NORMAN, OKLA. - (May 15, 2009) - The Make-A-Wish Foundation® of Oklahoma will grant a wish to another Oklahoma child, thanks to the generosity of employees at the Johnson Controls-Unitary Products’ manufacturing facility in Norman, Okla. Employees at the plant recently donated more than $5,500 to the nation’s largest wish-granting charity by participating in a garage sale and silent auction at the plant.
According to Brenda Keith, marketing project manager-Unitary Products, the garage sale featured a variety of new and gently used clothing that displayed the York®, Coleman® and Luxaire® brands.
"We had wearables ranging from leather jackets to caps and visors - things that had been worn once or twice at trade shows, sales meetings, etc.," Keith said. "We asked for a minimum donation of $5 for most clothing items and $20 for the heavier outerwear."
This was the fourth consecutive year that the Norman facility hosted the garage sale. "But this was the first time we tied the garage sale to a silent auction," Keith noted. The auction encouraged employees to submit bids for merchandise over a period of five days. Bids were updated daily, giving employees on every shift the opportunity to see the current high bid.
"We were really pleased with the participation of our employees in the bidding process," said Keith. "In all, we received 239 bids. I guess it’s true what they say: One man’s trash is another man’s treasure!"
Together, the garage sale and silent auction raised enough money to sponsor the wish of an Oklahoma child living with a life-threatening medical condition. Speaking on behalf of the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Oklahoma, Erin Byers, the chapter’s director of development, said, "You did a spectacular job, and we are going to be able to grant another wish of an Oklahoma child as a result of your efforts."
Keith was thrilled with the results and the generosity employees demonstrated.
"One employee lost his $500 bid to a bid for $700," she said. "However, when the winner withdrew his bid, this same employee split the difference between the two bids and increased his bid to $600. He didn’t have to do that, but he told me he wanted to because it was for a good cause.
"I heard that over and over again," she continued. "People told me, ‘This is great because it’s for such a good cause; It’s neat that the money will be used locally; I’m really happy to support this organization; and When are we going to do it again?’"
According to Keith, several employees increased their donation when they picked up their merchandise. "In addition, we had an employee who donated a $100 American Express gift card to the Make-A-Wish organization." These acts of generosity were as important to Keith as the total amount that was donated. "We are really excited at the support shown from the entire facility for this great cause."
The Make-A-Wish Foundation grants the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions to enrich the human experience with hope, strength and joy. It is the largest wish-granting charity in the nation, with 66 chapters in the United States and its territories. With the help of generous donors and more than 25,000 volunteers, the Make-A-Wish Foundation grants a wish every 40 minutes and has granted more than 171,000 heartfelt wishes since 1980.
Earlier this year, Johnson Controls, through its Luxaire brand, signed its third three-year contract with the Make-A-Wish Foundation of America. This extends the partnership with the nation’s largest wish-granting organization into 2011 and commits $675,000 in contributions over three years.
Luxaire first embarked on a partnership with the Make-A-Wish Foundation in 2001, agreeing to donate a portion of every sale of a Luxaire product toward its minimum annual contribution of $250,000. Since that time, Luxaire has donated more than $1.75 million to the organization, enough to grant the wishes of 250 children diagnosed with life-threatening medical conditions.
The Luxaire network of distributors and dealers also works with Make-A-Wish chapters to organize a variety of fundraising activities, including raffles, golf outings and events affiliated with minor league baseball, Central Hockey League and Arena Football League teams. Using money raised by these and other fundraising activities, Luxaire has directly sponsored the wishes of more than 80 children in dealer markets.
Luxaire encourages homeowners to participate in the program by donating all or a portion of product rebates to their local Make-A-Wish chapter during spring and summer promotions of Luxaire brand products. A number of redesigned marketing materials will continue to support the program and raise consumer awareness.
To learn more about the partnership between Luxaire and the Make-A-Wish Foundation, visit www.joinluxaire.com/MAW.
Luxaire® products from Johnson Controls, Inc., include high-performance residential central air-conditioners, heat pumps, furnaces and accessories and light-commercial, packaged heating and cooling systems marketed through a network of distributors and delivered to home- and building-owners through independent Luxaire heating and air conditioning dealers. For more information about Luxaire, visit www.joinluxaire.com or call 877-958-9247.
