The Season of Giving

When it comes to the holiday season, it truly is better to give than receive. Or at least that’s the culture the franchisees, their employees and the home office staff of Hand & Stone Massage and Facial Spas have embraced. Across the country, the spas are giving back to their communities during this holiday season.

“We believe we have a corporate responsibility to give back to the communities that support our brand all year long,” said Hand & Stone President and CEO, Todd Leff. “This is especially true during the holiday season when those of us who are blessed with family and good fortune can share with those less fortunate when they need it most.”

In the Philadelphia area, Hand & Stone corporate and the 50+ area franchisees came together to support WMMR’s 20th annual Preston & Steve Camp Out for Hunger. Morning personalities, Preston Elliot and Steve Morrison, along with show members camped out for a week in a parking lot adjacent to the sports stadium complex in South Philadelphia. They were joined by local celebrities, performers and athletes all in an effort to collect non-perishable food donations to provide meals to less privileged families in Philadelphia through Philabundance.

In all, Campout for Hunger collected a record-setting amount of food donations – more than 839 tons of food and $272,683 in cash were donated (making this the nation’s largest single-location food drive). Through these efforts, Philabundance will provide some 2.2 million meals for Philadelphia-area individuals.

Hand & Stone did its part by providing on-site massages to the guests and audience members that came out all week for the event. The Hand & Stone Spas also served as food collection centers and over a ton of food was donated by Hand & Stone franchisees, their employees, members and guests. What’s more, the area spas provided a check (with a Hand & Stone corporate match) for $5,000 to Philabundance to further help feed families in the area.

“I was so thrilled to be part of the event along with my Massage Therapists. To know that we raised the dollars and food we did during the holidays that will go to families in need right in our area, is really what is all about. I am so glad I was able to be here this week with the Hand & Stone team and see the impact of our efforts,” said Jason Martini, the owner of the Philadelphia University City Hand & Stone Spa.

All donations were provided to Philabundance. Philabundance is the Delaware Valley’s largest hunger relief organization, acquiring, rescuing and distributing food to 90,000 people weekly in 9 counties in PA and NJ. Of the people Philabundance serves, 30% percent are children and 16% percent are seniors. Others who seek food assistance include people with disabilities, single parents, veterans, students and working class families.