LaBella in the Community (LINC) – Winter 2026 Roundup

Adopt-a-Family

Organization: The Chamber Foundation (the philanthropic arm of the Dutchess County Regional Chamber of Commerce)
Event Date: November 20–December 12, 2025
Event Location: Poughkeepsie, NY

Event Description: LaBella’s Poughkeepsie office got into the holiday spirit by participating in The Chamber Foundation’s Adopt-a-Family program, which connects local businesses and organizations with families in need and helps bring joy to those facing challenging times during the holidays.

This past holiday season, our Poughkeepsie office adopted a family of six—two adults, four children under the age of five, and a cat. Employees contributed by purchasing and donating 75 gifts, attending a festive gift-wrapping party (complete with holiday music, treats, and a virtual fireplace), and helping deliver the presents. In the end, about 86% of the family’s wish list was fulfilled, including household items, personal care items, infant necessities, and toys.

Hope for the Holidays

Organization: Cuyahoga County Division of Children and Family Services
Event Date: December 4, 2025
Event Location: Cleveland, OH

Event Description: LaBellans from our Cleveland office joined the Cuyahoga County Division of Children and Family Services for their annual Hope for the Holidays program. This initiative provides gifts to children and teens in foster care, brightening their holiday season.

Tareq Masri, Deana Sritalapat, Ben Barry, Ron Garsteck, Tuvia Millstein, and Ed Odziemski helped sort and organize donated gifts, receive incoming packages, recycle cardboard, and assemble larger donations such as a Radio Flyer wagon. Their hands-on efforts helped prepare the gifts for timely distribution across the county, providing meaningful support to foster families.

Overall, this year’s Hope for the Holidays program resulted in over $250,000 in donations, personalized gifts for more than 1,900 kids, 130 volunteers contributing 392 total hours, and support from over 300 generous donors.

Helping Hands

Organization: J+J Flooring LLC, benefitting the Atrium Health Levine Children’s Hospital
Event Date: December 9, 2025
Event Location: Charlotte, NC

Event Description: Established by J+J Flooring, the Helping Hands initiative aims to brighten the holidays for children and families spending the season at the Atrium Health Levine Children’s Hospital. More than just a decorating event, Helping Hands brings together design and manufacturing professionals to support young patients and their families during a challenging time in their healing journey.

Inspired by this year’s “Frozen” theme, Jenny Villarreal and Janel Daley from our Charlotte office decorated three two-foot Christmas trees for the event. The finished trees are displayed at the hospital, where children and families can choose their favorite to bring back to their rooms. This small gesture has a big impact—lifting spirits, offering comfort, and bringing moments of joy to patients, families, and hospital staff.

Year-End Gift Basket Drive

Organization: InterFaith Works of CNY
Event Date: December 11, 2025
Event Location: Syracuse, NY

Event Description: Our Syracuse office gave back this past holiday season by supporting InterFaith Works of CNY’s Year-End Gift Basket Drive, an initiative that provides care and comfort to newly arrived refugee families, older adults in care facilities, and households experiencing food insecurity across Central New York.

LaBellans donated items leading up to a gift-wrapping and basket-assembly session in our Syracuse office. Each basket included five to seven thoughtful items, a gift card, and a handwritten note—a small but meaningful gesture meant to offer encouragement and connection to community members who could use a little extra care during this time of year.

Rochester Polar Plunge

Organization: Special Olympics New York
Event Date: February 1, 2026
Event Location: Ontario Beach Park – Rochester, NY

Event Description: The Rochester Polar Plunge is a fundraising event that supports the programs and services of Special Olympics New York, an organization that provides year-round sports training and competition, as well as leadership, health, and inclusion programs for individuals with intellectual disabilities.

With a motto like “Freezin’ for a Reason,” it’s no surprise that participants in the Rochester Polar Plunge—including LaBella’s own Tony Sanganetti and Mike Simon—raise money and show their commitment to Special Olympics New York by jumping into the frigid winter waters of Lake Ontario. This year’s event brought in more than $280,000 to support the organization’s mission and programming.

Valentine’s Day Cards for Golisano Children’s Hospital

Organization: Golisano Children’s Hospital
Event Date: February 12, 2026
Event Location: Rochester, NY

Event Description: For the 4th year in a row, a group of LaBellans from our Rochester office—along with more than 35 employees from one of our energy clients—volunteered their time and crafting skills to make Valentine’s Day cards for young patients at the Golisano Children’s Hospital.

Check out the photos for a look at some of the amazing cards created by our talented staff!

National Engineers Week Event

Organization: Buffalo Museum of Science
Event Date: February 16, 2026
Event Location: Buffalo, NY

Event Description: For the fourth consecutive year, LaBella sponsored the National Engineers Week event at the Buffalo Museum of Science.

LaBellans David Stutz, Don Hoefler, Matthew Doe, James Butron, Andrea Sauers, and Rebecca Smith planned hands-on activities and demonstrations to explain the importance of sound structural engineering to the children who visited the museum. Students built houses out of wooden dowels and clay, then tested their integrity on a “shake table” designed to simulate an earthquake.

We had a great day interacting with the community and teaching the children about the basics of structural engineering.