More than 200 ABM Franchising Group franchise owners, their families and friends came together on April 5, 2018, to stuff bears and dress them as super heroes to help lift the spirits of hospitalized children and their families in the Palm Springs, Calif., region.

During the event, participants were divided into teams and tasked with answering fun trivia to win capes, bears, stuffing, fabric markers, card making materials, gift bags and more. Once each team won their supplies, they stuffed their bears and dressed them to create a Dynamic-Duo kit, which contained a child's cape, mask and heartfelt handwritten note.

The "Bears and Capes Dynamic Duo" event was held exclusively for ABM Franchising Group, during its annual franchise owners' meeting. ABM Franchising Group offers two franchise brands, Linc Service and TEGG, which deliver preventive maintenance and system retrofit solutions to commercial and industrial buildings in over 15 countries. ABM Franchising Group is an operating unit of ABM Industries, a leading provider of integrated facility solutions.

"Any time a child is sick, it's not only scary for that child, but also for the entire family. So for ABM Franchising Group to be able to come together to provide them with something comforting, like these handmade bears and capes, is very special," said Mark Newsome, President of ABM Technical Solutions. "It was a fun event and heartwarming to know that these items will make a difference for the children and their families."

The bears and capes were delivered to a local children's hospital and The Hanson House in Palm Springs, which provides housing for the families of critically ill and injured hospital patients, cancer patients receiving chemotherapy and radiation treatment, parents of newborn babies in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, military families from the Marine base at Twenty Nine Palms, and families of first responders. The Hanson House provides low- or no-cost services.

The event and materials were supplied by A New Team Adventure, which provides corporate team building activities. ABM Franchising Group requested A New Team Adventure provide an activity that could be tied to a charitable cause.

During the event, Audrey Lowther, business owner at Kroon Electric Corporation, a TEGG franchise in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, and her husband, Ted Lowther, made a plush monkey they named Infinity, which they said was made with "ironman power and lots of TLC."

"It reminds Ted and I of how blessed we are to have three healthy children," Audrey Lowther said. "Our prayers go to all the children and families who will be receiving these."