Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Serving the Children: Ronald McDonald House


Being a good citizen is a great foundation upon which to build being a solid business person. Our experience is that business people need to balance their business with their family life and supporting the community.

Our own Anne Capps demonstrates this with her commitment to her Rotary Club.

“I’ve been very fortunate to be a part of a great group, the Addison (Texas) Breakfast Rotary Club,” Anne told us. It is a great service organization. We have chosen Ronald McDonald House of Dallas as our main charity.”

Anne is Executive Vice President of American Receivable. American Receivable provides small businesses with the financial resources they need to grow, increase inventory, make payroll on time, and effectively compete in the marketplace.

Recently Anne accompanied her Rotary colleagues to Dallas’ Ronald McDonald House to serve dinner. Volunteering to provide and serve a meal at the house is something groups, businesses and individuals can do for three meals a day, 365 days each year at the House.

“Ronald McDonald House is a place for families of critically ill children to stay while their child is seeking treatment,” Gracie Thompson of the events staff told us. “They can stay here for little or no charge and know there is hope,” she said.

Dallas’ Ronald McDonald House was founded in 1981 and opened their new, 59-room facility in 2009. Built and run entirely with donations and volunteers, the facility is haven for children from toddler age to 18 who are seeking treatment. The atmosphere is decidedly upbeat and the positive energy comes through from both staff, volunteers and families alike.

“This is a place of hope,” Gracie continued. “At night there is a beacon that shines from our tower that can be seen from each major children’s hospital in town. That helps those children who are patients not feel afraid or alone.”

On the night they served dinner, Anne’s Rotary group fed over 50 people. She and her 12 volunteers worked hard but it was well worth the effort seeing the grateful expressions on the faces of those they served.

“Ronald McDonald House is a special place to us,” Anne said. “It is a great cause and a wonderful experience for us.”

For more information on what American Receivable and Rotary do and to hear more stories about community service and solid business practices, contact Anne Capps at 972-404-4726.

The American Receivable Team

Wednesday, July 6, 2011

Doing Lunch for a Valued Client


It is a simple thing to to do: buy your client lunch. But it gets a bit more complicated if you do it for a whole company.

But it can be really rewarding, too.

Not long ago, Brad Gurney and Anne Capps of our staff took lunch to one of our long-time clients. We wanted to say thank you to them and give them a well-deserved treat. Little did we know it would take most of a day.

Our client, Fred, is CEO of a small manufacturing firm here in North Texas. He treats his staff like family and they are intensely loyal in return. But they don’t get to take a break and have lunch or get to do it together all that often given the nature of their business.

(Because of the private nature of our industry and work, we are not using our client’s real name to protect him)

So Brad and I ordered up pizza and drinks for the staff and headed over. Our plan was to sit on the phones and man their computers while the staff enjoyed a quiet meal amongst themselves in the company break room.

We thought it would take about an hour and a half. It took 4 hours.

And Fred insisted we eat with them.

But it was a time enjoyed and appreciated by all. Our gesture was appreciated and deserved by our client. It was a simple gift we gave to them and didn’t cost all that much. And well worth the time.

Fred’s business runs on customer service and so does ours. For more information on what we do and to hear more stories like Fred’s, contact Anne Capps at 972-404-4726.

The American Receivable Team