Rinnai America Corp., a leading brand of tankless water heaters, has been an established partner with Folds of Honor since 2018. The premise of the partnership — which remains in effect today — is to offer educational scholarships to spouses and children of America's fallen and disabled service members to support their continued education and professional development. The program with Rinnai has been highly successful, awarding nearly 80 recipients over the past four years and culminating in more than $400,000 in donations. Capping off this year's activity Rinnai made an incremental donation of $50,000 to further support those interested in the building trades. 

"Our brand promise is Creating a healthier way of living, and our partnership with Folds of Honor has assisted military families across the country to pursue their educational and professional dreams," said Frank Windsor, president, Rinnai America Corp. "Our engagement with Folds of Honor is meaningful to us both as an organization and as individuals. We are deeply passionate about finding and feeding new talent into the building trades and partnering with Folds of Honor allows us to do so while also supporting veterans." 

The skilled labor shortage continues to be a challenge faced not only by Rinnai but by the building category as a whole. Through the partnership with Folds of Honor, the tankless water heater manufacturer supports military families, as well as the trades. Currently, 42 students are attending trade or technical schools made possible through Rinnai's engagement with the nonprofit. And with the company's 2021 incremental donation, an additional ten individuals interested in the trades, including future welders and electricians, have been enabled to take the next step in their training and educational journey. 

"We are extremely pleased with the partnership with Rinnai," said Lt. Colonel Rooney, founder and CEO of Folds of Honor. "Their involvement directly helps students interested in the trades and is a testament to Rinnai's commitment to their industry. One hundred percent of Rinnai's donation goes directly towards those seeking a career in the trades. We're so humbled and honored to serve people in need and having companies like Rinnai support our cause helps us move one step closer towards serving more." 

For more than fourteen years, Folds of Honor has helped support education for 35,000 students, creating career opportunities across diverse categories including cooking to mass communications to cosmetology. This year, Folds of Honor raised $32 million and awarded 7,000 scholarships to military families.