Farmington company looks to donate $15k to needy family with unpaid medical bills
FARMINGTON — If you know of a needy San Juan County family that could use some help paying some significant medical bills, a Farmington plumbing company wants to hear from you.
M&R Plumbing Service is seeking nominations for its Treston Project, through which it plans to donate approximately $15,000 this holiday season to a local family that is experiencing a tough financial road. Rachel Bartley, the company’s human resources director, said nominations will be accepted through Dec. 9, and company officials plan to decide on a winner and award the money shortly before Christmas.
The Treston Project is named for the child of a company employee who experienced significant medical issues of his own. Company officials decided in January to begin contributing $20 to the fund each time someone left a Google review on the M&R Plumbing website, and that fund had swelled to more than $14,000 by late November, Bartley said.
By the time the money is donated during the third week of December, she hopes that figure is closer to $15,000. M&R officials intend to donate at least $10,000 to a needy family each year.
“We’re looking for families that maybe have some kind of medical expenses or bills they are racking up that are creating a hardship for them,” she said.
Bartley said the company began soliciting nominations in the middle of November, and she said it already has received a handful of nominations for families that might be worthy recipients of the money. Once the nomination process has ended, Bartley said a team of M&R employees would reach out to the nominees to arrange site visits and interviews to learn more about each family’s situation.
The possibility exists that more than one winner could be selected, she said, in which case the money would be split.
The company has been promoting the project on its social media accounts and on cable television ads targeted for the Farmington market, but Bartley encouraged anyone who knows a family that needs help with its medical bills to submit a nomination. She said the company has no expectations for how many nominations it receives.
“We just want to make sure the right people are hearing about it,” she said. “As long as we have two or three good (nominees), we’re fine. The process is pretty simple on our end, and we just want some families we can help.”
To nominate your family, or another family, visit the company’s website at mandrplumbingservice.com/giving. A short, online nomination form is featured that seeks basic information such as the name of the family, their contact information and a description of the difficult circumstances they are facing.
Bartley said anyone who doesn’t have access to a computer also can nominate someone over the phone by calling 505-325-9312 or even dropping by company headquarters at 1215 Mission Ave.
Mike Easterling can be reached at 505-564-4610 or measterling@daily-times.com. Support local journalism with a digital subscription: http://bit.ly/2I6TU0e.
This article originally appeared on Farmington Daily Times: M&R Plumbing Service is seeking nominations for its Treston Project
