Building on Hope with Gwaltney
As four-year-old Adriana was pulling out of her driveway early in the morning with her aunt and cousin, the team from Gwaltney was pulling in to get started on a big surprise. One of Gwaltney’s values is to give back to the community and one of the ways they do that is through their partnership with Roc Solid Foundation. In 2022, Gwaltney built three backyard playsets for kids fighting cancer. One of those playsets was built for Adriana, who is fighting leukemia, in Charlotte, NC.
“This is so awesome to be here to provide this playset to Adriana,” Aric Almirola, driver of the #10 Smithfield Ford Mustang, commented while helping build Adriana’s playset. “It’s such a proud moment for me and my team, both with Roc Solid Foundation and Gwaltney, to be able to do this through this partnership—to give back.”
Kids fighting cancer have weakened immune systems due to the intensity of their treatment. This means they can’t play on public playgrounds and makes it hard for them to do what kids do best—play. Companies like Gwaltney come alongside Roc Solid to build playsets right in these kiddos’ backyards to give them the gift of play. “Such a wonderful thing,” Aric added as the team built Adriana’s playset.
Play Defeats Cancer
“One thing we truly believe here at Roc Solid Foundation is that play defeats cancer,” Roc Solid’s founder and Chief Play Officer, Eric Newman, shared. “She’s going to come around that corner and see her playset for the first time, and she’s not going to be thinking about cancer.”
As the team from Gwaltney was working hard on the finishing touches on Adriana’s playset, she was just arriving back home. As a few Gwaltney team members walked her and her siblings, blindfolded, around the house and right up to their playset, there was a bright smile on every face, as they eagerly awaited her reaction to her playset. When all the volunteers counted down for Adriana to remove her blindfold, there was no hiding her shock and excitement.
“It is like a dream.”
“There are no words to describe how I felt, how Adriana felt when she saw it,” Adrana’s mama bear, Rosa, shared her heartfelt thanks. “I am so grateful for all the people here who helped us build it. It is like a dream for Adriana.”
“It’s a wonderful thing we can participate in with Roc Solid Foundation,” Chris Braselton, Gwaltney’s Brand Manager, shared. “…really helping kids and their families deal with cancer in a way that helps take their mind off of it and really celebrate what it means to be a kid.”
This playset build was part of Gwaltney’s “Building on Hope” campaign to provide playsets through Roc Solid Foundation to several kids in VA and NC in 2022.
Are you or your company interested in building hope for a kiddo fighting cancer? Please visit our Sponsor a Project or Become a Corporate Partner page on our website or email us at info@rocsolidfoundation.org to get started today. Together, let’s change the world!
