Matt Gohlke is a big believer in giving back. His staff also holds that value dear.
But after donating to so many worthy causes over the years, he felt something was missing.
“It felt like all we were doing was writing checks,” says Gohlke, president of Gohlke Pools, a Denton, Tex. company that ranked among this year’s PSN Top 50 Builders and Top 50 Service companies.
He wanted to find ways where his company could not only give in a more significant way, but also witness firsthand the impact that gift would make. He came up with two new programs that fall squarely within the company’s wheelhouse, and make a profound difference to the recipient.
At the time, Gohlke Pools was maintaining a residential swimming pool for a woman who had lost her husband. They provided the service at no charge. Matt Gohlke didn’t think much of it at the time. They were already in the backyard. The cost of maintaining a pool was one thing they could take off of her plate.
Then he received a voicemail message from a mutual friend of theirs. She was so grateful that Gohlke volunteered to clean her friend’s pool that she was audibly crying. Gohlke played the message on his speakerphone for all of his staff to hear.
“They were like ‘Oh, man. We’ve got to step this up,’” Gohlke recalls.
They expanded that single good act into a bereavement pool service, which was offered to everyone, not just their current customers. Staffers would hear about people through church or find them in the newspaper’s obituary section, and they would offer them three months of complimentary pool service. Grieving widows who lost their husbands most often find this service helpful. Gohlke estimates that his company is maintaining three to five pools a week, free of charge.
Another simple way the company gives back: Roadside assistance. While on the road, members of his service team will pull over and help stranded motorists any way they can.
Helping comes easy to his staff.
“This isn’t a Matt Gohlke deal,” he says. “I get a lot of credit for things. For our staff, it’s the right thing to do ... They don’t think anything of it.”
