Show Their Commitment To The Community

Charitable giving is alive and well in America. There’s no doubt about that. A quick skim through the headlines of any national newspaper and you’ll see big companies receiving positive ink for their charitable contributions.

It’s difficult to overlook Johnson & Johnson’s $88-million-plus donation last year to the Head Start Program, or Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream contributing a remarkable 7.5% of its pretax profits to charity. And who could forget Big Blue? IBM practically invented corporate giving. Its most recent endeavor, “Reinventing Education,” is the gift that keeps on giving. The program equips public schools with computers and provides access to the Internet. To date, contributions are at $35 million and growing. It’s companies such as these who have set the stage for philanthropic giving.

PCOs COMMITTED TO THE COMMUNITY. Big or small, a gift is a gift, and many different people are benefiting. No one knows this more than the professionals that make up the pest control industry.

The philanthropy arena welcomes anyone, and the pest control industry is stepping up to help. PCOs, manufacturers and pest control associations are all making a difference. The industry’s generosity is turning heads and making people take notice and it has encouraged others to get more involved.

“Philanthropy helps affirm our industry’s commitment to the communities we serve,” said Greg Baumann, director of field services, National Pest Control Association. “It also enables PCOs to show the public their genuine concern to help people in need.”

What follows is a peek into a few of the charitable acts PCOs have made to their communities. And while IBM’s donation of $35 million is impressive, so are the efforts PCOs have made in terms of donated labor, manpower and hours of hard work. In the professional pest control industry, Bayer Corporation is one organization that supports PCOs who are committed to helping others in need by providing complimentary product for such endeavors.

Prayers Answered. Church administrators at the Timothy Lutheran Church in Blue Springs, Mo., put their trust in Dave Cole to rid their church of termites. The church was in serious need of attention and money was a concern. Termites had devoured irreplaceable church documents and they were beginning to take a toll on the sanctuary, courtyard and perimeter of the structure.

Armed with more than 800 gallons of Premise, Cole, owner of Cole Termite & Pest Control, a Kansas City, Mo.-based pest control firm, treated the entire sanctuary at no charge. The sanctuary is a massive open venue filled with hundreds of wooden pews and a large wall-sized wooden altar, a treat for hungry termites.

The services of another PCO also helped save the St. Patrick’s Church in Miami Beach, Fla., from aggressive subterranean termites. With church repair and maintenance funds limited, Monsignor Vaughan and church staffers approached Bart Bruni, owner of Bestec Exterminators, Miami Beach, Fla., to save the church. Extensive damage was visible on walls and on an exterior hallway attachment. In October 1997, Bruni and his crew of three took on the termites to provide structural protection to the 69-year-old church and surrounding grounds. Bruni provided the treatment at half the cost.

“St. Patrick’s is historic. It’s one of the oldest and largest churches in Miami,” Bruni said. “If my company can help preserve it with a Premise termite treatment, then we’ve done something beneficial for the whole community.”

YMCA Stronger. A motto of the YMCA is to “build strong kids, strong families and strong communities.” That’s a motto and belief Mike Wilder takes to heart. Wilder, president of Wolfpack Pest Control in Albemarle, N.C., 40 miles outside Charlotte, had the commitment to protect a new addition to the Stanly County YMCA from termites. Wilder and his crew provided a termite pre-construction treatment to a new 5,600 square foot addition which included an indoor therapy pool.

“The YMCA is a major social center for this community,” said Wilder. “This facility and organization helps the entire community. Providing labor and a high-quality pre-treatment is the best way we can give back to our community.”

Louisiana PCOs Make a Difference. If charitable contributions and programs were ever deserving of attention, “One Day To Make A Difference” earns a special place on the bill. The brainchild of the Louisiana Pest Control Association, “One Day” is an opportunity for PCOs across the state to give something back by providing donated termite and general pest control services to people in need.

Dan Foster, general manager at Terminix Pest Control in Houma, La., has made a difference this past summer by working with several other area PCOs to provide a termite treatment to a residential home in need of attention. Damage was advancing and the structure required extensive treatment. Time and labor were provided free of charge by Terminix and DA Exterminating, Houma, La. The home is now protected thanks to these helpful PCOs.

“The work we provided did make a difference,” Foster said. “We were able to help someone in need. There’s no telling how much repairs would have cost that family if we didn’t provide a treatment that worked to control their termite problems.”

Cole Schober, who is the executive director of the LPCA and coordinates the one-day charity event, said that “One Day” exemplifies professionalism and typifies the spirit of giving that lies within LPCA and its members. The event runs in conjunction with National Pest Control Month in June.

PCOs Provide Home Protection. It’s been more than three years since the Bob W. Brown House received an extensive termite treatment with Premise as part of a charitable donation from four Kentucky-based pest control firms. Yet the residents and home administrators continue to benefit from this charitable act.

All-Rite Pest Control, Pest Master and Guarantee Pest Control of Lexington and Okolona Pest Control of Louisville, treated the complex that consists of four buildings and a courtyard. Carolyn Hale, manager of the not-for-profit facility which provides living quarters for residents with disabilities, says that philanthropic contributions like the donated termite treatment are what help sustain and keep the Bob Brown House in operation.

“This wonderful gift has helped us keep the facility running and standing,” said Hale. “Literally, the termite treatment has put stability under us. It didn’t just help our operating fund but it’s helped strengthen and protect the whole structure. Without a strong building we don’t have a home.” Charlie Asberry, service manager for All-Rite Pest Control said that helping the Bob Brown House was a great way to help the community by doing the things he does best — pest control. “When pest control companies get together like we did, it promotes a professional image,” said Asberry. “It also helps solve environmental problems by controlling termites.”

COMPANIES THAT GIVE, RECEIVE. It’s obvious that companies have a genuine concern and desire to help the people and the communities they serve. And while providing assistance to those in need is the key reason for getting involved in philanthropy in the first place, it’s becoming apparent that companies who give also tend to receive.

This is what The American Benefactor, a leading resource of the philanthropic community, refers to as “enlightened self-interest.” It may sound a little self-serving at first mention, yet it makes a great deal of business sense while delivering benefits and assistance to those in need.

Quite simply, enlightened self-interest benefits a need, a group, an area or a program first and foremost. In turn, that same act also benefits the group giving the gift. For example, when Citicorp developed its microlending agency, ACCION, to provide microlending or small loans to the people of Latin America, several groups benefited. Latin Americans who needed small loans to start up small businesses got them. It was a dream come true. The other benefactor was Citicorp. By extending small loans, they’ve also created an opportunity to gain a potential new customer.

For the pest control industry, enlightened self-interest for PCOs and associations may come in the form of positive media coverage on a local radio or TV station or coverage in a local newspaper for their philanthropic efforts. This could also lead to positive word of mouth advertising and additional referral and repeat business.

Whether it be millions or minutes, giving to a person or group in need can be the responsibility of corporate America, whether you’re part of a huge conglomerate or a two-man shop that’s run from your home. Everyone in this industry should be conscientious about ways of helping the communities in which they serve. Not only will it better serve our communities, but we will continue to make a positive impact on the overall image of the pest control industry.