‘Extreme Makeover: Home Edition’
connection
continues to benefit
good people
Whenever Harleysville donates homeowners insurance to another
“Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” family, there’s a good chance Ted
Majewski will come to know some very nice people.
“It’s always enjoyable to meet the
deserving folks who receive these new homes, along with a year of
free coverage from our company,” says Harleysville’s senior vice
president of personal lines insurance. “They’re all very
appreciative.”
Harleysville’s celebrity insureds
are gaining a value-added extra, too, Majewski explains: “Not only
do they get free insurance, they also receive expert counsel from
quality independent agents they can rely on.”
Majewski says these agents have exhibited much enthusiasm over
the program. “Our agents are excited to be a part of this
experience, and I can tell they’re proud to say they represent the company that supports
‘Extreme Makeover: Home Edition’
families.”
Harleysville delivers …
again
On June 22, 2006, Majewski and Maria
Wasiczko, president of Wasiczko Insurance Agency in Yonkers, N.Y.,
visited the Arena family in Purdys, N.Y., to present a certificate
for one year of free homeowners insurance, as well as other gifts
for the family.
“The Arenas were very down to
earth,” notes Wasiczko. “It was like talking to your own family.
When we walked in, we immediately got the feeling this isn’t a
showplace—it’s a home. They were impressed with—and very
appreciative of—what Harleysville had done for them.”
The Arena family’s story was all
about “Jimboy,” as he was affectionately known to family and
friends. In 2005, when Jim and Gina Arena learned their
five-year-old son had an inoperable brain tumor, they resolved to
use the small amount of money they had to seek a cure for their
child. As word of Jimmy’s illness spread, neighbors raised funds for
medical treatment and held special events in his honor. Sadly, no
one could stop the disease and, in September 2005, shortly after his
sixth birthday, Jimboy passed away.
Rebuilding hopes and dreams
As the Arena family of eight (which
includes Jimboy’s six surviving sisters, ages three-16) grieved
their loss, ABC’s “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” and their
sponsors joined the effort to help the family rebuild their lives.
And, on May 14, 2006, a national television audience watched as the
Arena house was demolished, and a new one was built in its place.
The new Arena home is insured by
Harleysville at its replacement value, and the annual premium was
waived for the first year.
Jim Arena is grateful for the support his family has received: “I
don’t think there’s any way my family or I would have been able to
make it without the help we’ve had from the community. For people to
keep on giving to our family is a very humbling experience, and I’m
very thankful Harleysville has provided this insurance for us.”Click
here to visit
the “AS FEATURED ON” page for the Arena episode on the “Extreme
Makeover: Home Edition” website, where Harleysville Insurance is
listed as one of the many companies donating products and services. |
