Mutant Window Cleaners With A Touch Of Pink

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama -- The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles made an appearance at Children's of Alabama to wash the windows at the Benjamin Russell Building and bring smiles to the young patients. They scaled down the 15 story hospital building stopping at every floor to see the kids. The superheroes work for Squeegee Cleaning Services of Chelsea. Over 200 patients watched the show. Brian Danner, 12.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle window washers amaze young patients at Children's Hospital (Birmingham, Alabama): Window washers dressed as the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles made an appearance at Children's of Alabama to wash the windows at the Benjamin Russell Building and bring smiles to the young patients. The window washers dressed as Michelangelo, Leonardo, Donatello and Raphael.

They scaled down the 15 story hospital building stopping at every floor to see the kids. The superheroes work for Squeegee Cleaning Services of Chelsea. Young patients dressed up as their favorite Ninja Turtle and crowded around the windows in the waiting areas with their parents and nurses to see the four superheroes descend on ropes and cables outside. Patients were giving Ninja Turtle capes and masks to wear during the event.

Michelangelo, Leonardo, Donatello, Raphael scaled down the building, stopping at every floor to see the kids. Patients were giving Ninja Turtle capes and masks to wear.

Fist bumps, waves and laughter filled the rooms on every floor. To bring attention to Childhood Cancer and Sickle Cell Awareness Month, Children's is "Celebrating Our Heroes" this week to bring awareness to the hospital's patients own heroic battles they fight daily. HOAR teamed up with Children's of Alabama for the event. The patients got to meet the Ninja Turtle Superheroes for photos and a meet and greet when they returned to earth.

A touch of pink.

Huntsville Firefighters window clean with think pink theme (Huntsville/Lake of Bays): Fire Department participates in the CIBC Run for the Cure – an annual five-kilometer run that raises funds for breast cancer research – and these local firefighters are going all out with a team effort to raise money and awareness. For this year’s event, the Huntsville team, which is called Breast Rescue, will be clad in pink bunker gear. “We got 14 suits donated to us by Starfield Lion, the company that makes our gear,” said Gary Monahan, deputy fire chief of Huntsville/Lake of Bays. “Some of the stations are training as a group [for Run for the Cure].

I have about 24 people that want to jump into the 14 suits. For some it hits close to home as they’ve had a loved one that’s been affected by breast cancer, so it will be tough to determine who gets to wear the pink gear.” Gearing up for the run, that will be held in Bracebridge on Sunday, Oct. 5, the firefighters will be on the fundraising trail.

This Saturday you will find them at the new Capstone Market and Tim Hortons offering to squeegee vehicle windows for a donation. They will also have pink T-shirts with the department’s official insignia on the front and the “Breast Rescue” team name on the back, available for a minimum donation of $25. “We’ll have a ladder truck there with a banner so that people can see it from a distance,” said Monahan. “We want people to know that if they’re coming to Tim Hortons they’re going to inundated with pink.” The firefighters will offer their window cleaning services from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. and donations can be made in cash or by cheque and credit card on site. People can also donate directly to the team online.

A Double Helping Of Super

A Squeegee Cleaning Services of Chelsea window washer dressed as Superman flexes for Reginae Bush, 5, Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2013, at Children’s of Alabama in Birmingham, Ala. Window washers dressed as Superman, Spider-man, Batman and Captain America scaled down the 15-story hospital building stopping at every floor to see the kids.

Alabama hospital patients greeted by comic heroes (Birmingham, Ala.) - Patients at Children’s of Alabama waved and fist-bumped a few comic book heroes through the hospital’s windowpanes as the characters rappelled down the side of the 15-story building. Employees from Squeegee Cleaning Services of Chelsea dressed up as Superman, Batman, Spiderman and Captain America Tuesday and rappelled down the building to greet children on each floor. The visits were part of the hospital’s “Celebrating Our Heroes” week, which is part of an event at the hospital aimed at raising awareness of childhood cancer and sickle cell.

Some of the patients were dressed up in superhero costumes themselves, donning capes and masked that matched the heroes on the other side of the glass. Squeegee Cleaning Services partnered with Children's of Alabama to do the bi-annual window cleaning for the building, and made it more exciting for the young patients by wearing superhero costumes on the job. 

Superheroes Wash Windows at Geisinger (PLAINS TOWNSHIP) — Some might say that a hospital is full of superheroes, people who save lives and prevent illness. But a few real superheroes visited the children at Geisinger Wyoming Valley near Wilkes-Barre on Tuesday. It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s Superman! He’s working side by side with Spiderman, leaping the side of Geisinger Wyoming Valley near Wilkes-Barre in a single bound. “Today, we have our annual window washing, but with a special twist,” said Geisinger Chief Administrative Officer John Buckley.

The twist is the window washers are actually employees of a window washing company in Harrisburg. But on this day, they are dressed up as superheroes for the kids’ enjoyment. To the youngsters watching from inside, like little Kaylee Law of Jenkins Township, these are real superheroes. “It means the world to me because she gets to see something that she’s never saw up close like that before, so she was really in shock,” said Kaylee’s dad Michael Law.

It’s not just the children who get excited. “The caregiving team really gets a kick out of it themselves. We have a little bit of the debate about whose favorite superhero there is,” said Buckley. Making people happy is a lot to live up to, but not difficult for Spiderman or Superman. After all, with great power, comes great responsibility. “I never even turned around and seen what everyone else looking at us. She had my attention as much as I had her attention I bet,” said window washer Aaron “Superman” Jones. “She seemed so happy. She feels so much better. Since yesterday, she was really sick, and now today she’s more energetic, more active, more happy,” said Law. No doubt thanks to these heroes, who put smiles on faces faster than a speeding bullet.

Friday 13th - Window Washer Survives 13-Story Fall

The $450 million Children's of Alabama hospital is scheduled to open this summer.

Window washer survives 13-story fall down new Children's hospital in Birmingham: Birmingham, Alabama — Authorities say a window washer plunged 13 stories down the side of an Alabama hospital tower and survived the harrowing fall. WBRC-TV reports that safety equipment slowed the descent of the worker. Authorities say he fell in mulch at the base of the building, which is under construction at Children's of Alabama in Birmingham on Thursday. WBRC reports that the worker was outside the building's 13th floor and preparing to clean the windows when he fell to the ground. Children's of Alabama spokeswoman Rachel Olis says the 14-story building has been under construction but is nearing completion and is scheduled to open this summer. Details on the worker's condition were not immediately available. Doug Ecker of Hoar Construction says the worker is a subcontractor of an Atlanta construction firm.

Window washer survives 13-story fall from highrise -  Worker's safety gear slowed his descent. Authorities say a window washer plunged 13 stories down the side of an Alabama hospital tower and survived the fall. Birmingham Fire Batallion Chief C.W. Mardis says the worker was getting onto a platform outside the building Thursday when his safety equipment malfunctioned. Mardis says the worker's safety gear slowed his descent somewhat, and he was fortunate to land in an area with newly planted bushes and mulch, which might have broken his fall. Mardis says the worker was conscious when he was taken to UAB Hospital, where he's recovering. Doug Ecker of Hoar Construction says the worker is affiliated with an Atlanta construction firm. Children's of Alabama spokeswoman Rachel Olis says the 14-story building has been under construction but is nearing completion and is scheduled to open this summer.

Homeless Harlem Window Cleaner Turns His Life Around

Harlem Window Washer Sees His Life Reflected in His Work: Warren Cook was once homeless. Now his company cleans windows for Red Rooster and other Harlem businesses. Warren Cook was at rock bottom when he arrived in New York City from Alabama several years ago. His marriage had just dissolved and he was living on the streets in the grips of a drug addiction. And then he ran into Sylvester Onuorah who owns a UPS Store on Frederick Douglass Boulevard. Cook, 53, asked for some money for food. Onuorah purchased a meal for the stranger, but also invited him to stop by the store and earn the meal by doing odd jobs. "I had to change my lifestyle. I was with the lowest of the low. I couldn't get any lower," Cook said, his voice heavy with a southern twang.

Soon Cook, a former mechanic and car detailer, was a regular at the store, handing out fliers and doing whatever needed doing. One afternoon Cook noticed that the windows of the UPS store were a little hazy. Cleaning windows was a skill a one-eyed fellow homeless man taught him as a way to hustle up enough money for a meal or a room. "I brought some squeegees and cleaning equipment and noticed that he cleaned the windows really well," said Onuorah. "I suggested he talk to some of the other small business owners in the area and do the same for them."

Today, it's not hard to catch Cook as he frenetically traverses Harlem with his cart, bucket of water and assortment of squeegees. He launched the company WC Window Cleaners, and now cleans between 30 to 40 storefronts per day. He's so busy, some days he has to start as early as 4:30 a.m. His clients range from the famous, like Marcus Samuelsson's Red Rooster Harlem, to the neighborhood locals, like All Eyes on Us, an eyeglass store on 125th Street. Cook says every window he cleans is part of the process of him piecing his life back together. At the same time, he's doing his part to keep his adopted home clean.

The evidence is in the string of streak-free windows Cook leaves in his wake. If you see your reflection in the window of a Harlem storefront, chances are you have Cook to thank. "It's like being in the world for something good. People now depend on me. The work I do makes people see Harlem on the bright side," Cook said. John Kandel, owner of Bad Horse Pizza at Frederick Douglas Boulevard at West 120th Street, says he saw Cook cleaning a window down the block and recruited his services. "I said we are opening a place and we've got a lot of windows. Now, he comes once a week like clockwork," said Kandel. "He cleans the best buildings on the boulevard and he's like my brother from another mother."

Cook can't spend five minutes outdoors without stopping to chat with someone he has met while cleaning windows. Every store owner he doesn't know presents an opportunity to pick up a new client. Every new grand opening sign is another appointment to add to his dozens of other clients. While cleaning Bad Horse Pizza's windows, he ran into 36-year-old Shelton Seeley. "When I was younger he used to try to get me to work with him," said Seeley. "He's got a lot of hustle, that's why he's doing his thing."

Warren Cook with his mentor Sylvester Onuorah who owns a UPS Store on Frederick Douglass Boulevard and suggested that Cook start cleaning windows.

After moving down a few storefronts to clean the window of a newly-opened beauty shop, Cook stopped in the UPS store to check on his mentor. "What I noticed about you was that you believed in yourself and had a can-do attitude," said Onuorah. "You are proof that there is dignity in labor." "Today, you get your windows cleaned for free," Cook laughed.

Listening in the background was Valerie Jo Bradley, co-founder of the Marcus Garvey Park Alliance, who had stopped in to mail a package. She was looking for someone to clean her brownstone's 18 windows. Cook was quick to point out that he has the tools to clean a third-story window from the ground. "I get these window washers and then they just disappear," Bradley said. "Not me," said Cook. "You can ask around about me, I'm reliable." "If you're good, I give a lot of referrals," Bradley added while trying to renegotiate the price. "I'm so low, everybody can afford me," said Cook.

With a new client in hand, Cook turned down West 119th Street toward St. Nicholas Avenue. There he saw a new French bistro opening and arranged to clean their windows. From there he crossed the street to the newly-renovated Honey Salon for his weekly visit. "He's all over the place," said Imani Thomas, 20, who greeted Cook with a smile and a hug. She met Cook when he came to clean windows at a restaurant she worked at further uptown. "I like the way he does things. He's just very consistent," said Honey Salon's owner LaToya Boothe.

Cook says he has no choice but to be consistent given the lows he's risen from. "I'd work eight days a week if I could. Some days, I show up at a place and I'm not even supposed to be there," said Cook, whose girlfriend helps keep the business in order. He sees his story as a testament to his religious faith. His goal is to one day eventually be able to hire other homeless people and share with them the opportunities he feels he's been given. "They say miracles don't happen but if you'd seen me before you'd know I'm a miracle," said Cook. "It's my testimony to let other people know, especially homeless people, that there's hope."