OAK BROOK, IL--(Marketwired - Jul 18, 2013) - Today, Ace Hardware, the largest retailer-owned hardware cooperative in the industry, will surprise nine year-old Ellie Fontanetta, the 2013 Ace Cares for Kids "All-Star" and Lockport, Ill. resident, with a floor to ceiling playroom makeover. Led by Ace's Design Expert, Katie Reynolds, and Ace's Home Expert, Lou Manfredini, with the help of local Illinois businesses, including Will Cook Ace Hardware, Next Door & Window, Concrete Creations Plus, Ozinga, Carroll Distributing & Construction Supply, Inc., Preferred Electric, and Precision Painting and Decorating Corporation and donations from American Girl, Ellie's playroom will receive a complete makeover featuring Clark+Kensington®, Ace's exclusive line of paint+primer in one.
This year, Ace is proud to continue its support of Children's Miracle Network Hospitals and introduce the Ace Cares for Kids "All-Star" program. Throughout 2013, Ellie is serving as the inaugural ambassador for the Ace Foundation, bringing attention and awareness to the lifesaving work that Children's Miracle Network Hospitals across the nation do each day. She is also acting as the face of the Ace Cares for Kids icon campaign this month, which is raising funds at Ace Hardware stores across the country for local Children's Miracle Network Hospitals through a national, in-store fundraising initiative supported by Procter & Gamble.
"It has been a privilege to have been given the opportunity to provide this makeover to such a deserving little girl," said Reynolds. "With the help of Ace Hardware and kind donations from several local businesses we're able to provide Ellie with a gorgeous new playroom where she can set her imagination free and build memories for years to come."
Diagnosed with severe spina bifida at birth, Ellie has received treatment at the local Children's Miracle Network hospital in Chicago, Lurie Children's, all her life. Facing each day with courage, perseverance and strength, she is a positive role model for all of the patients she meets each day. She and her family truly embody Ace's mission to treat people as you would a neighbor in their commitment to helping other families by sharing their own story with them as they also receive treatment from the doctors and nurses at Lurie Children's.
"For more than 20 years, Children's Miracle Network Hospitals and the children they support have been a very special part of the Ace family and this year with the launch of the Ace Cares for Kids 'All-Star' program we're continuing to develop and expand our support of this wonderful organization," said Manfredini. "We couldn't be happier to recognize Ellie and her family for all that they have done for their local community while also raising awareness and funds for local Children's Miracle Network Hospitals across the country."
The makeover will also be featured on an upcoming episode of HouseSmarts, the nationally syndicated home improvement show hosted by Manfredini, later this fall.
Clark+Kensington, a premium line of paint+primer in one, is available exclusively at Ace Hardware and its satin and semi-gloss finishes were ranked #1 by a leading consumer magazine in recent tests of interior paints. The paint line features 120 colors that harmoniously work together to offer homeowners the ability to create a space that matches their personal color and décor preferences.
As a proud supporter of Children's Miracle Network Hospitals, Ace Hardware has been dedicated to raising funds for children's hospitals all over the country, including Lurie Children's. Over the past 20 years, the Ace Foundation has raised more than $54 million for Children's Miracle Network Hospitals.
For more information on the Ace Cares For Kids "All-Star" program, Clark+Kensington or Ace's Home and Design Experts please stop by your local Ace Hardware Store or visit www.Facebook.com/AceHardware.
About Ace Hardware
For nearly 90 years, Ace Hardware has been known as the place with the helpful hardware folks in thousands of neighborhoods across America, providing customers with a more personal kind of helpful. In 2013, Ace ranked "Highest in Customer Satisfaction with Home Improvement Retail Stores, Seven Years in a Row" according to J.D. Power. With more than 4,700 hardware stores locally owned and operated across the globe, Ace is the largest hardware cooperative in the industry. Headquartered in Oak Brook, Ill., Ace and its subsidiaries currently operate 14 distribution centers in the U.S and also have distribution capabilities in Shanghai, China; Panama City, Panama; and Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Its retailers' stores are located in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and approximately 60 countries. For more information on Ace, visit www.acehardware.com.
About the Ace Hardware Foundation
As the official charitable division of Ace Hardware Corporation, the Ace Hardware Foundation helps enhance the vision of being the "Helpful Place" in local communities across the country and around the globe through charitable giving. The Ace Foundation provides support and philanthropic opportunities to its consumers, retail store owners, vendors and team members to give back to local communities through fundraising efforts for Children's Miracle Network Hospitals and American Red Cross Disaster Relief.
About Lurie Children's
Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, formerly Children's Memorial Hospital, is a 23-story, state-of-the-art hospital located in downtown Chicago on the campus of its academic partner, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. Lurie Children's is ranked as one of the nation's top children's hospitals in the U.S. News & World Report 2012-13 Honor Roll rankings. Lurie Children's provides pediatric care in a setting that offers the latest benefits and innovations in medical technology, research and family-friendly design. The hospital relies on philanthropic support to care for more than 149,000 children each year. Learn more at luriechildrens.org.