“It was pretty easy to say ‘Yes’ to this idea,” said Leitel. “Spec Products would match whatever we could raise at the Party, up to $5,000.00, and the money would go to St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital. It was an amazingly generous offer and a great opportunity for the industry to rise to the occasion.”

Andrew Weisensel, also of Spec Products, had a chance to talk about St. Jude’s at the event and he told the group, “People in our industry work hard and play hard, but there’s more. They have is a willingness to give. Sometimes it’s a project where they donate some materials, sometimes it’s volunteering for a board or committee, and sometimes – hopefully tonight – it’s making a donation.”

Leitel said that, “It was fun to provide updates throughout the evening. Each time we inched a little closer to our goal, we’d get another donation form. One group went so far as to guarantee that they would make up any difference between what we had collected and whatever it took to reach our goal. That was really generous.”

When asked if the numbers surprised him, Van Gomple said they didn’t. “We knew when we put a challenge out there that these guys would make it happen. They’re a good and generous bunch. I’m happy this worked out, especially for the kids.”