In Rochester, Minnesota, Haley Comfort Systems is known for keeping homes warm through long Midwestern winters. But for this family-owned HVAC business, comfort has always meant more than furnaces and fireplaces, it’s about creating spaces where people feel supported, seen, and cared for.
Founded in 1990, Haley Comfort Systems has grown from a small family operation into a cornerstone of its community, with a 20,000-square-foot showroom and a team deeply committed to giving back. Today, that commitment shows up in powerful ways, from hosting one of the region’s largest suicide prevention fundraisers to donating fireplaces and furnaces, meals, and time to families in need.
At the center of it all is a simple belief: when you’re part of a community, you have a responsibility to show up for it.
A Family Business, Built on Values
Haley Comfort Systems didn’t start as a brand. It started as a family operation—and it still runs that way.
“As a second-generation company, it’s always been about more than just work,” Nicole Haley explains. “My dad and uncle started the business, and over time my brother, sister, and even spouses became part of it too. It really is a family operation in every sense of the word.”
Founded by Tom Haley and his brother Joe, the company grew with the next generation stepping in where they were needed. Nicole Haley, now Sales and Marketing Manager, began on the fireplace side of the business before taking on broader responsibility across HVAC operations, marketing, and leadership. Other siblings and spouses followed, not because it was expected, but because the work required people who were invested for the long term.
As the company expanded—shifting its focus toward residential HVAC service and replacement while maintaining fireplace and decorative lighting offerings—the structure changed. The values didn’t.
Integrity. A positive attitude. A driven mindset. These aren’t framed as cultural aspirations. They’re operating standards for how the team works with customers and with each other.
That approach is captured plainly in the company’s tagline: Employee preferred, customer referred.
Giving Back Is Part of the Business Model
For Haley Comfort Systems, community involvement wasn’t added later. It was always part of how leadership defined success.
“Giving back has always been important to my dad and uncle,” Nicole says. “They wanted to show how many people we could impact, not just how big the business could be.”
In 2017, the company formalized that belief with an annual fall sale during their busiest season, committing a portion of sales to local nonprofit organizations. Early partners included organizations like the Ronald McDonald House, with manufacturing partners often matching donations to increase the total impact.
What started as a seasonal initiative became a repeatable model. And over time, it grew into something more focused.
Oktoberfest and a Cause That Matters
In 2021, Haley Comfort Systems made a deliberate decision to dedicate its annual fundraiser to suicide prevention and mental health awareness.
The choice was personal. The Haley family lost a loved one to suicide in 2007. For years, they wanted to support others dealing with similar loss, but they didn’t know how the community would respond to a cause that many businesses avoid addressing publicly.
The response removed any doubt.
Today, the company’s Oktoberfest fundraiser draws more than 1,500 attendees each year and has raised over $506,000 in the past five years for organizations including the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP), NAMI, and local groups like Aidan’s Light.
“We weren’t sure how the community would receive it at first,” Nicole admits. “But it’s been incredible to see how people show up year after year. The event brings people together and reminds them they’re not alone.”
The numbers reflect that commitment. The first suicide prevention fundraiser raised $48,000. The most recent event raised $164,000. The growth wasn’t driven by promotion. It came from people choosing to show up, year after year, for a cause that resonated.
Community Impact Beyond the Check
Fundraising is only part of the company’s involvement.
The Haley Comfort Systems team regularly volunteers their time, including cooking meals for families at the Ronald McDonald House, donating fireplaces or furnaces to community members, and participating in community events like the Studs, Struts, and Stilettos fashion show, where trades professionals take the runway to support affordable housing initiatives.
Balancing that level of involvement with the demands of a growing HVAC business took adjustment.
“The first couple of years, we were working out a lot of kinks,” Nicole says. “But we had leadership support, and now we’ve found a rhythm that allows us to run a strong business and still be hands-on in the community.”
That rhythm is supported by partnerships with fellow businesses and nonprofit organizations. Over time, those relationships became mutually reinforcing—helping nonprofits extend their reach while giving Haley Comfort Systems a clearer way to involve its team in work that matters.
What It Means to Power a Community
When Nicole talks about what it means to “power” a community, she doesn’t focus on equipment or installations.
“Our team impacts an incredible number of people every single day,” she says. “You’re not just fixing heat or air conditioning—you’re helping someone through a hard moment and turning it into something positive. People are craving human connection, and the trades have a real opportunity to provide that.”
That connection happens in ordinary moments: a no-heat call in the middle of winter, a family dealing with unexpected repairs, a homeowner under stress. The team sees those interactions as opportunities to do more than complete a job.
Sometimes that means providing a free furnace to a local hero. Sometimes it means helping a family through a difficult season. Often, it simply means showing up with patience and respect when someone needs it.
The belief is straightforward: the work matters because people do.
Creating Capacity to Give Back With ServiceTitan
Running large-scale community events like Oktoberfest requires time, coordination, and follow-through. For a service business, those resources are limited.
Haley Comfort Systems has been using ServiceTitan for about a year and a half, and the team credits the platform with improving operational efficiency and customer communication, particularly through tools like Marketing Pro.
“Customer communication and touchpoints have become much more efficient,” Nicole says. “ServiceTitan is powerful—it’s an animal—but once you start to understand it, you see how customizable it really is.”
Looking back, she adds, “You have to be on ServiceTitan if you’re a service company. I honestly wish we had explored it sooner because of how much it enables growth.”
While there is a learning curve, Nicole sees the flexibility as a long-term advantage. Streamlined operations create space—space to support employees, serve customers consistently, and stay deeply involved in the community.
Advice for Contractors Who Want to Get Involved
For other contractors considering how to give back, Nicole keeps the advice practical.
“Find a cause that’s meaningful to you or your team,” she says. “You don’t have to do everything at once. When it’s authentic, the impact follows.”
Community involvement doesn’t require scale to matter. It requires intention. Whether it starts with a local partnership, a volunteer day, or a single cause the team believes in, the key is showing up and staying involved.
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Built for This
Haley Comfort Systems shows what’s possible when a trades business treats values as operating principles rather than marketing language.
Through consistent service, long-term community investment, and a clear sense of responsibility, the company continues to prove that the trades are built to lead, connect, and care—one job, one family, and one community at a time.
Want to learn more about ServiceTitan’s Power the Nation initiative and the contractors making a difference across the country? Visit servicetitan.com/power-the-nation.
