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Marke’s 40th anniversary celebration proves a winner for local charities.
This year is a milestone for Marke’s Heating & Cooling Inc. – the company celebrates an impressive 40 years in business. To show customers their appreciation, owner and founder Jack Davis and president Tim Ferguson have developed a charity nomination program that gives back to the community that has given the company so much over the years.
Each month Beaufort County residents have the chance to vote for their favorite local charity via the Marke’s Heating & Cooling Inc. Web site. At the end of each month, the company donates $500 to the charity with the most votes.
With more than 4,000 participants, the company has received nominations for more than 50 charities and donated $3,000 to six local charities.
“It is never strayed from my mind that we are only here because of our customers,” said Davis. “That is the only reason that we exist … you do business differently if you look at it from that perspective.”
And Davis was quick to point out that there is no ulterior motive to the program. He is not using the email addresses he obtains through the nomination program for marketing purposes.
He began the company in 1968 and had plans to retire this year, but then he started the charity program and his idea of retirement quickly changed once he realized how fulfilling the work is. He is now reaching out to a network of 400 heating and cooling companies nationally and is encouraging them to create philanthropy programs similar to his.
Davis said they hope that the playing field will be leveled when it comes to smaller, lesser-known charities.
“The Little Red Dog Foundation … they only have 10 board members, but yet they had over 300 votes in a given month,” Davis said of the July winner, whose charity donates specially-equipped tricycles to children and adults with disabilities.
Additional winners include: Hilton Head Heroes (May), Palmetto chapter of American Red Cross (June), Heroes on Horseback (August), and the Palmetto Animal League (September). To vote visit markesheatingandair.com; for more information call (843) 836-3000.
