Parents at the Ronald McDonald House have a friend in TECO

Given the opportunity to help others in the community, TECO team members are indeed “lovin’ it” – most recently at the Ronald McDonald House on Davis Islands.

On May 1, Tampa Electric’s Regulatory Accounting team donated their time and energy to prepare food for 14 families at the charity, which provides a temporary residence for parents whose children are receiving medical treatment at local hospitals. Dinner included pulled pork sandwiches, homemade macaroni and cheese, coleslaw, baked beans and chocolate cake.

“It’s hard to get your head around the stress and uncertainty that parents can feel when their children are in the hospital,” said Sloan Lewis, manager of Regulatory Accounting. “It was a small gesture of help to make dinner for residents of the Ronald McDonald House, but the entire team from TECO got so much more out of the volunteer opportunity.”

As they do with charitable organizations across Florida and in New Mexico, TECO team members have a long history of helping those in need. At the Ronald McDonald House in 2014, two groups prepared meals on separate occasions. Tampa Electric’s Lindsay O’Bryan, financial reporting analyst, donates extra time on her own at the charity – more than 100 hours in 2014 alone.

“Lindsay’s work really inspired this team, and it fits right in with the culture at TECO to help people in need,” Sloan said. “The parents at Ronald McDonald House stopped by to express their gratitude for the meal while we were there cooking. It’s the kind of response that makes us more determined to try and make things a little better for people going through tough situations.”