McCarthy Building Celebrates 150 Years of Building with a Monster Donation

The Southern California Division of McCarthy Building Companies, Inc. recently celebrated the firm’s 150th anniversary by assembling and giving 60 bicycles and 60 wagons to six local charities in Loma Linda, Riverside, Orange, Los Angeles and San Diego counties. The team building activity resulted in 120 bikes and wagons that were donated to six local children’s organizations and hospitals, including Loma Linda University Children’s Hospital (LLUCH); Rady Children’s Hospital; CHOC Children’s, Orangewood Children’s Foundation, Roy W. Roberts, II Watts/Willowbrook Boys and Girls Club (WWBGC) and Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater San Diego. Loma Linda University Children’s Hospital, CHOC Children’s and Rady Children’s Hospital all received wagons for pediatric patients to use while undergoing treatment at the hospitals. The wagons were delivered by McCarthy Heart Hats to staff at LLUCH on May 27, 2014. It’s always so rewarding and inspiring to work with companies like McCarthy Building Companies,” said Jillian Payne, Executive Director, Loma Linda University Children's Hospital Foundation (LLUCH Foundation). “They demonstrate their passion for children through creative activities and gifts that bring smiles to patient’s faces at our Children’s Hospital!” During the bike and wagon building event, McCarthy employees formed teams and raced to complete their task of building bikes and wagons with tools they received after answering trivia questions about the company’s history. Once the bikes and wagons were built, participants conducted a “quality assurance test” by riding the bikes and pulling the wagons through an obstacle course before presenting them to children and representatives from the charities/organizations attending the event. “We told the children they were going on a field trip to build bikes for someone else,” said Rebecca Caldwell, director of resource development for the Roy W. Roberts, II Watts/Willowbrook Boys & Girls Club. “They were grinning ear to ear once they entered the ballroom and were told they could pick one shiny new bike just for them.” “There is no better way to celebrate McCarthy’s 150th anniversary and to reinforce our heritage as a community-based builder than by conducting a community outreach event and giving back to the communities in which we live, work and play,” said Randy Highland, McCarthy President, California Region. “McCarthy has focused on serving customers in the local community since its founding 150 years ago. The same principles our firm established in 1864 still guide us today: a focus on meeting each client’s needs, a willingness to work hard together to bring exceptional value to every project, and genuine people committed to improving people’s lives. We do that not only in the projects we build, but also through the McCarthy Heart Hats community involvement program, such as this bike and wagon building event and the various other in-kind services and donations we provide year round to local charities and individuals who need it most.” “Celebrating our 150th anniversary is more than looking back at past successes. This national Heart Hats effort offers an inspirational way to look to the future, brightening the lives of just some of those children who will help our communities grow and thrive going forward.”