Employees of local manufacturing company make a sizable donation to a non-profit organization aiming to assist suicide survivors.


PARIS, IL
(May 23, 2019) – North American Lighting (NAL) raises $6,000 through Team Member shirt sales and a company donation for Team of Mercy, a non-profit organization assisting survivors following the loss of a loved one to suicide.

The fundraiser initiative was led by NAL’s Activity Committee of the Paris Manufacturing Facility. Each year the facility holds a T-shirt fundraiser for Team Members to purchase in support of a meaningful cause. NAL Team Members can then wear their shirts every Friday for a designated month, instead of their standard uniform. The committee chose Team of Mercy as this year’s fundraising event to raise awareness for mental health and suicide.

“NAL is proud of the generosity of our Team Members in our Paris Manufacturing Facility,” said HR Manager, Barrie Ballentine. “They have shown us time and again the depth of caring they have for their community, and specifically those causes that are near and dear to them.”

This T-shirt fundraiser was their largest effort to date, selling over 470 shirts and raising a grand total of $6,000. NAL’s Corporate Headquarters donated an additional $1,400 to the Team Member-funded amount. 

“We as Team Members and a family are extremely thankful and proud to work for such an amazing company who openly supports a cause so close to our hearts,” said Tabitha Rhoads, NAL Production Supervisor. “Through this fundraiser, NAL helped bring awareness to suicide prevention and we were able to introduce Team of Mercy to our community in hopes that the organization can support others the same way it helped me and my sister Samantha Rhoads, NAL Assembly Team Leader, when we lost our dad.”

“No one should ever have to experience grief due to losing a loved one to suicide,” said Kris Weir of the Corporate HR Team. “I am experiencing this first hand because my Dad took his life last year. Overwhelmed with the struggle of coming to terms with his death, denial, anger, depression, and hopelessness governed my life. Luckily, I was given the number for Team of Mercy from a social worker friend. This support from NAL will further provide our community with the tools and resources to aid those who are suffering on so many levels.”

NAL was also represented by a group at Team of Mercy’s recent Surviving the Color Run, hosted in Terre Haute, IN.

About North American Lighting, Inc.

North American Lighting, Inc., member of the Koito Group of Companies, is the largest automotive lighting manufacturer in North America and has been manufacturing since 1983. NAL is a pioneer in vehicular lighting from LEDs to adaptive driving beams and is now pursuing the latest technology in autonomous driving. NAL’s nine facilities in North America combined with the global network of Koito Group Companies, uniquely positions the company to meet increasing global demands for safe, energy-efficient, eco-friendly, and intelligent automotive lighting systems. For more information, visit www.nal.com.

About Team of Mercy

Team of Mercy is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization aiming to assist survivors following the loss of a loved one to suicide. Team of Mercy provides services such as a suicide survivor support group, one-on-one survivor support, biohazard scene cleanup, suicide prevention education, and individual grief counseling through local clinicians who partner with Team of Mercy. Survivors of suicide fight a battle they’re not prepared to fight. Team of Mercy is dedicated to walking beside survivors as they learn to heal and return to their lives. To learn more or get involved, visit www.teamofmercy.com.

Contact:  Kayla Lindsay, Corporate Branding Specialist:  217-465-6600 

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