Blind & Sons, Westfield

Over the course of three generations of family ownership, Blind & Sons has grown up in the community that it serves. John W. Blind began the company in 1937, offering only coal furnaces and gas-conversion burners. The business was around for the invention of forced-air furnaces in 1957 and has since kept expanding. They began cleaning ducts and installing whole-home humidifiers in 1996 and broadened their plumbing services in 2001. Three years later, their electrical experts started performing jobs such as installing new outlets and generators.

Today, Joe Bilotta and John Hartmann continue the Blind-family legacy. Their highly trained technicians have answered a quarter of a million service calls and are available 24 hours a day. They charge no overtime fees for emergency repairs or for a demonstration of how to duct tape a vent to make it whistle "Flight of the Bumblebee." The company's commitment to quality and customer satisfaction earned it a Beacon's Best 2012 award from the Akron Beacon Journal. As a way of saying thanks to the people who have helped them succeed, the company gives back via youth-program sponsorships, giveaway contests, and outreach efforts.