(L-R) Jeff Worzala, Brooke Jevicks from Make-A-Wish Michigan, and Jim Cain of Renewal by Andersen of Indianapolis RbA in the Community
RbA locations give back when childhood illness hits close to home
Last year, Steve Davidson, owner of four Renewal by Andersen locations, decided he wanted to do more to give back to the communities where his stores do business. “I overheard a customer saying, ‘When I shop somewhere, I want to know what they do with my money,’” he says.
Davidson decided he wanted to focus his locations’ efforts on helping seriously ill children, and turned to Jeff Worzala, marketing director for Renewal by Andersen of Indiana, Greater Michigan, and Dayton, OH.
Davidson didn’t approach Worzala for his marketing skills, however. Rather, he wanted to learn about the needs of Riley Children’s Hospital, a highly respected hospital in Indianapolis.
“Steve asked me, ‘What are their needs? How can we give back?” Worzala says.
Inspired by a Survivor
Worzala has first-hand knowledge of Riley’s: His son Joey was under the hospital’s care for more than three years as he battled acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). (Joey, who just turned 7, was declared cancer-free in January.)
“As a family/patient, we got to know many of the Riley staff well over the duration of his treatment,” Worzala explains. “The Child Life group was a huge help to Joey during his treatment—the employees offer distractions for children during treatment days. They work with the kids on crafts or play games with them to keep their mind off what is happening.”
Davidson was so impressed by their services and quality of care that he gave Worzala and the rest of the Renewal by Andersen of Indiana team the green light to hold fundraisers for the hospital.
Making a Difference in 4 Communities
In June 2016, the Davidson Group donated $10 for every window the Indianapolis location sold in the central Indiana, South Bend, and Fort Wayne areas. The effort raised nearly $8,700 to provide supplies and resources for the hospital’s Child Life team. The Davidson Group also donated $10,000 to the Riley Children’s Foundation.
The Indianapolis location also partnered with the hospital on its #GiveHope campaign late last year, and sponsored an hour of programming during a recent radiothon on Indianapolis station WFMS-95.5 that benefited Riley Children’s.
More recently, this past March, all four of the Davidson Group’s Renewal by Andersen locations (Indianapolis; South Bend, Indiana; Greater Michigan; and Cincinnati-Dayton, Ohio) donated $10 to a children’s charity for every window they sold. Indianapolis’ and South Bend’s donations went to Riley, Michigan’s went to the state chapter of Make-A-Wish Foundation, and Cincinnati-Dayton’s went to the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital. Each location donated a minimum of $5,000.
“When we spoke with the children’s services folks at Riley Children’s Hospital in Indianapolis, we learned that they get the least amount of donations. Most go to research and facilities, so we designated our giving there to the hospital’s North Child Life area,” Davidson explains.
“Our donation to Cincinnati Children’s Hospital funded the purchase of 7-10 laptop computers for young patients’ rooms. At our Greater Michigan location, we chose to donate to the Make-A-Wish Foundation, again because of Jeff’s son Joey, who went on a trip to Disney World through Make-A-Wish. We funded one ‘wish’ last year, and we’ll probably fund two to three this year.”
The Reward of Giving Back
All smiles: Six-year-old Joey Worzala grins for a selfie. Jeff Worzala, wife Angie, daughter Melanie, and Joey. Their experience with juvenile leukemia inspired Steve Davidson to help fund causes fighting childhood illnesses. Davidson has worked hard for years to grow his business and reach the point when he can give back to the communities his Renewal by Andersen locations serve.
“We’ve grown a lot since 2010,” he says. “We started with five employees and we now have nearly 200. When your business is small, you want to do things but you can’t financially commit until you know your business is going to survive. It feels good to have gotten to that point and to have the ability to make an impact.”
He hopes to donate $100,000 this year, double what was donated in 2016, and feels that he has benefited just as much as the nonprofit organizations his group supports.
“After we made those donations last year, I received a half-dozen letters from employees whose own children or a relatives’ children have received care at Riley or Cincinnati children’s hospitals,” he says.
“That made giving back even more rewarding.”
Pictured above: Steve Davidson joins members of his Indianapolis team (L-R): Jeff Worzala, Erika Nicholas, Chelsea Cantu, Lynda Cummings, Allen Mertes, Kayla Maddox, Anthony Henderson, Justin Terrasi, Katie Carson, and Davidson. 