STATEN ISLAND, NY — On Aug. 25, three Staten Island Luxaire dealers helped grant a wish to a child on Staten Island through a partnership with ABCO Refrigeration, the Make-A-Wish Foundation®, and the Staten Island Yankees, a Class A minor league baseball club.

The event was an opportunity to bring business and charity together in order to raise money for the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Members of ABCO Refrigeration’s sales and management team, ABCO’s Staten Island Branch, and dealers from Larsen & Ruggiero Mechanical, A-1 Service Masters Inc., and Comfort Air HVAC Inc., were all present for the event.

Jennifer Ruggiero (Larsen & Ruggiero), Steve Zahn (A-1 Service Masters), and Alvin Card (Comfort Air HVAC) then took to the mound to throw the ceremonial first pitches. The dealers were followed to the pitcher’s mound by former major league pitcher Dave Cone, who provided the play-by-play for the game on the YES network. Cone provided a signed shirt to help support the Make-A-Wish Foundation auction. Players for the Yankees minor league team also donated their autographed shirts, which were auctioned off during the game and afterwards on the team’s website.

‘A SPECIAL NIGHT’

“This is a wonderful opportunity for our dealers, providing a perfect rallying point and getting their names as well as ours in front of consumers,” said Doug Widenmann of Luxaire.

“How exciting it is to see our Luxaire dealers and the Luxaire name up in lights against the dramatic backdrop of New York Harbor,” added Jonathan Gart, ABCO Refrigeration’s vice president of sales. “Not only was this a fantastic promotional opportunity, it ultimately raised money to help Make-A-Wish, while raising consumer awareness of the Luxaire brand and our dealer’s commitment to their community. Everyone at ABCO is so proud to be a part of this special night.”

The event raised over $10,000, including a winning bid of $1,225 for Cone’s autographed jersey and almost $800 through the sales of Luxaire/Make-A-Wish/ABCO T-shirts sold during the event.

Luxaire has entered into a three-year partnership with the Make-A-Wish Foundation to help children with life-threatening illnesses. The company makes an annual donation of $250,000.

According to Luxaire, the company encourages its dealers to work closely with their local Make-A-Wish chapters on a variety of programs and customized projects. The company also offers homeowners the opportunity to donate all or a portion of their rebates during spring and fall promotions to their local chapters of the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

For more information, visit www.luxaire.com (website).

Publication date: 09/16/2002