Being a part of the community means much more than selling needed services. It means getting involved and being a good neighbor.

According to the 2005 State of Corporate Citizenship survey, most companies are motivated to be good corporate citizens by both their values and bottom-line results. Many see that businesses generally, and their company specifically, should help strengthen communities because the health of society and business are inextricably linked.

The Center for Corporate Citizenship at Boston College and The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Center for Corporate Citizenship’s survey also found that

81% of owners/executives indicate that corporate citizenship needs to be a priority for companies, 69% agree that the public has a right to expect good corporate citizenship, and 64% say that corporate citizenship makes a tangible contribution to the company bottom line.

This survey is unique in including the voices of small and medium-sized businesses, as well as their larger counterparts.

So what can contractors do to benefit the neighborhood?

The short answer: Whatever it takes.

There are myriad ways hvacr contractors can make a difference in their communities. Volunteering time to local causes or donating services to folks who can’t afford to have furnace tune-ups are easy ways to show your local community you care about their well being.

To do its part, the Air Conditioning Contractors of America (ACCA) rallies its chapters and members around the country to fan out to service or replace heating systems in the homes of the elderly, disabled, or less fortunate.

“We still live in a country where there are people who need this type of assistance to survive,” says ACCA President Paul Stalknecht. “When they use alternative methods of heating, they risk fires and carbon monoxide poisoning. ACCA members volunteer their time and materials to help keep them safe as well as comfortable. What they’re doing is truly a life-saving service for their neighbors.”

The chapters work with public and private social service organizations to identify families who need help. Each chapter takes its own approach to the effort. For example, ACCA San Antonio President and CEO Jack Lappeus said that his chapter worked with city agencies to identify people who were low income, disabled, and elderly.

It’s a community service effort, but it’s also rewarding for the volunteers.

“My company has been actively involved for the last eight years,” says Steve Wilson, Wilson Heating and Air Conditioning, Dallas. “Every year we are invited into a stranger’s home to offer a much needed service that they cannot afford to pay for themselves. After a few moments we are no longer strangers. Oftentimes the homeowner is older or disabled and unable to communicate verbally, but the tears in their eyes or the smiles on their faces tell us how much it means to them that we are there.”

ACCA members can find out how they can participate by contacting their ACCA chapter, if there is one in their area. For general information, contact Kimya Bailey Cajchun at 703-824-8845 or kimya.cajchun@acca.org.