by John Stevens
October 6, 2011 8:20 AM
Innovation and creativity - powerful characteristics. Managers of LifeStorage of Aurora , Ginger Smith and Dan O'Neil combined those characteristics to bring together a successful fund raising activity that benefited a local school and their self storage tenants at the same time.
Sometimes self storage tenants decide that they no longer need or want the items they have been storing in their rental unit. Removing the items from storage and taking them back to their home to sell at a garage sale is a cumbersome task. That's where the creativity of the LifeStorage managers blossomed.
They held a combined tenant garage sale and charity cookout on Saturday, October 1st. Tenants could sell unwanted items from their storage at the garage sale held on the premises. At the same time, a charity cookout was in progress.
People sold items they no longer needed. Members of the community could buy garage sale items and also get something to eat. Proceeds from the cookout went to the Hope D. Wall School. It was a win-win situation for tenants, garage sale attendees -- and especially the school.
The Hope D. Wall School provides educational services to students with mental disabilities. It prepares students to be productive members of society by giving them an educational setting that promotes their emotional and social adjustment and development. The goal is to help students become as independent as possible.
Hope Wall taught elementary school for many years. When asked by parents in 1961 to create a school for mentally retarded children, she started the John F. Kennedy School for the Mentally Retarded. She was the only teacher. The school was held in an old post office building. In 1969 the school was renamed in honor of Wall and in 1971 a new facility was built for the school.
LifeStorage manager, Ginger Smith, had been approached earlier to help the school with a school supply drive. However, because of the location of the storage facility, Smith felt there wouldn't be much traffic to make the drive successful. Then, Smith and O'Neil used their creativity and innovation and came up with the solution of a combined garage sale and cook-out.
"I not only work in the community but I live here as well and I believe that helping the local community is the best way to show my support. The Hope D Wall School helps so many young people in our community that it is great to know that we are giving back to those who need our support," Smith said.
Sources Used:
"LifeStorage, Self Storage Company, Holds Tenant Garage Sale and Charity Cookout." PR Web; 6 October 2011.
"Hope D. Wall, 89." Chicago Tribune; 9 November 2001.
Hope D. Wall School.