Philippi-Hagenbuch, Inc. (PHIL) is working with the Susan G. Komen Memorial to increase breast cancer awareness and prevention and raise funds for research dedicated to finding a cure. Through December 2014, every customer that orders a pink PHIL Autogate Tailgate will have the option to take part in the Pink Tailgate Initiative, and PHIL will donate 5 percent of proceeds to the Susan G. Komen Memorial. Each tailgate will be pink and adorned with a ribbon on the back.
Charitable giving and community involvement are core values of the family-owned company. PHIL team members participate on a variety of boards and the majority of the Hagenbuch family either is currently or has been involved in medical-based philanthropies. Pat Hagenbuch is a member of the Board of Directors for the Hult Center for Healthy Living, a community health organization that focuses on cancer programs, and Danette (Hagenbuch) Swank (the third generation to lead PHIL) serves on the Foundation Council for the OSF Saint Francis Foundation, which provides advisory leadership for philanthropic efforts such as cancer prevention, research and awareness.
Last summer, when Swank was named president, it was important to her that the values PHIL was founded upon by her father, LeRoy Hagenbuch, and grandfather, L.B. Philippi, would continue to be cornerstones of the business.
Swank is in a unique position as female leader of a manufacturing business dedicated to equipment for quarries, mines, and other heavy-duty off-highway truck environments. She has an opportunity to impact a cause that is important to her – the fight for a cure for breast cancer. Swank has already taken part in multiple Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure events and Avon’s 3-Day, 40-mile walk. These experiences inspired her to create the Pink Tailgate Initiative.
Peoria, Ill., PHIL’s headquarters, is also the hometown of Susan G. Komen. The global breast cancer movement started with a promise by Suzy’s sister, Nancy Brinker, to do everything in her power to end breast cancer. Through a series of Race for the Cure events dedicated to raising funds and awareness, Susan G. Komen has become the global leader in the fight against breast cancer, having raised more than $2.2 billion for research and life-saving community health programs.
For more information regarding PHIL’s Pink Tailgate Initiative, visit the "PHILanthropy" page of their website.