Employee-Led Ramp Build Honors Family’s Decades-Long History with BraunAbility
Giving Back with Ramps
BraunAbility’s mission is to ‘make life a moving experience for all’, and that’s especially true when it comes to giving back to its local communities in Northwest Indiana where decades of employees have lived and worked. One way BraunAbility employees give back is to build ramps at homes where the owner or family member with mobility challenges have no safe way to get in or out.
A ramp can literally mean the difference between someone being able to access life outside their home or not. Lack of accessible entry and exit could stand in the way of someone grocery shopping, getting to medical appointments, and accessing loved ones independently. The impact is huge.
This year brought a particularly exciting opportunity to impact a special local family that has three generations of loyal service at BraunAbility. Employee volunteers were eager to pick up the lumber, hammer and nails and give back to a family that’s one of their own: Deb and Paul Green of Royal Center, Indiana.
Meet The Greens
The Greens have strong ties to BraunAbility. Three generations of the family worked for BraunAbility, including Deb’s father, Deb and her husband, Paul, and their sons. Three of them hold 10-year anniversary plaques, and both Deb and her husband spent over two decades growing with the company. The Greens strongly embody the company values of No Excuses and Do What’s Right.
The decades-long story began when Pat Floyd, Deb’s father, started work in the Cylinder Department of the then small-but-growing mobility plant. Later, Deb’s husband, Paul, began working in the Assembly Department where Deb joined him a year later. She would later move to Wiring and eventually join her husband again in Machining, on 3rd shift, where they both stayed for over two decades.
“I honestly thought it might be more brain work than I could do,” she shared. But Deb’s supervisor had faith in her, and Deb quickly proved her doubts were unfounded. She had what it took to be a part of the BraunAbility family and continued to grow with the company.
Deb and Paul’s sons would also both work for BraunAbility, with son Chris holding positions that ranged from Indiana to Mesa, Arizona.
“People ask me about working with my family and my husband,” she laughed. “It was never a challenge for us. I just appreciated the extra time with loved ones over the years.”
The Greens Navigate Change
Changes on the horizon would make Deb appreciate this extra family time in ways she could never have imagined.
Deb shared that she was working first shift when growing pains with one of her sons meant she needed to spend more time with him at home. With her supervisor’s support, she was able to change shifts to accommodate her family’s changing needs.
Later, Deb’s father was diagnosed with cancer during her time with the company, and her work-life balance shifted, once again. Sadly, he passed in 2005, but she took comfort knowing she’d had extra time with him, when he needed her.
In more recent years, Paul has been diagnosed with dementia. Deb found herself, at 60, unexpectedly becoming her husband’s full-time caregiver. Paul was no longer able to work, and Deb had to retire early to be there for him.
One way the couple desperately needed help was finding a way to make getting in and out of their home safer for Paul as his mobility changed. That’s when the BraunAbility family stepped up.
Wisdom to Share
Deb reflected back on both her life and her time with BraunAbility. “I just want to tell people; You never know how much time you have with the people you love.”
She credits her faith in God, a strong support system from family, and the community of shared experience in Alzheimer’s groups for keeping her strong as she continues to navigate her husband’s changing needs. “Find your support system. It’s the best advice I can give.”
And as for her years with BraunAbility?
“I see young people just starting with the company and hope they appreciate the full impact of working there. We made a good living at Braun, and they helped us understand how to invest it. They supported Paul while he was still working, and they adjusted my workload to make sure I got more time with my family over the years. But the impact what we do has on others…that’s a big part of it too. You know you are making a real difference.”
