Latest news with #WindowWorld
Yahoo
5 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Window World responds in wrongful death lawsuit
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (WKBN) — Window World has filed a response in a wrongful death lawsuit following a home explosion in Ellsworth Township that killed four people. The lawsuit filed by administrators for the estates of the deceased alleged that workers putting siding on the home damaged propane gas lines but failed to recognize they had damaged those lines, leading to the explosion. The lawsuit filed earlier this year against Window World alleged that Joann and Jeffrey Kocanyar, the owner of the home at 8521 Huxley Rd, hired Window World to replace the siding on their home and that workers affiliated with the company had been working at the house on Oct. 4, 2024, the day before the explosion. Several neighbors described hearing 'very loud,' 'banging,' and 'hammering' coming from the home before it was discovered that a water pipe in the basement had broken around 4 p.m., causing a leak in the basement, the lawsuit contends. Window World's response was filed Tuesday in Mahoning County Court of Common Pleas, denying those allegations and stating that the cause of the damages remains undetermined, and other individuals and/or companies could have contributed to the damages and injuries alleged. The State Fire Marshal concluded its investigation into the explosion earlier this year. That investigation did not pinpoint an exact cause of the explosion but indicated that the probable cause was a propane leak. The Fire Marshal's report did note that crews with Window World had been installing vinyl siding on the home and had begun preparation work the day before the explosion. They received a report that one of the workers had broken a water pipe in the basement and that the Kocanyars were getting materials to repair the pipe. The explosion occurred around 7:20 a.m. the next day, and investigators had trouble pinpointing the source of the explosion due to the extensive damage to the home and lack of burn patterns. Investigators did find a propane tank behind the garage with lines leading to the basement and to a gas fireplace on the south side of the home. Window World's response acknowledges that Window World contracted with various individuals for certain work, including subcontracting services for which it had no active participation. Window World is denying liability as it 'had no active participation in the work performed' and 'did not directly control the work to be performed.' The response also states, 'the injuries and damages alleged by Plaintiffs were caused by intervening and/or superseding actions, for which this answering Defendant has no legal liability.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
20-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Family run business wins prestigious award
BOARDMAN, Ohio (WKBN) – A locally owned family-run business has a lot to celebrate. The Moran Family, owners of six Window World franchise locations in the region received the prestigious 'Store of the Year' Award. For the first time in the history of the award, the family was honored for four of their six locations: Youngstown, Pittsburgh, Upper Ohio Valley, and Toledo. 'I love the family dynamic that we have here, not only with my actual family but with everybody that we work with,' said Window World marketing director Mandi Fluck, who is also owner Pat Moran's daughter. 'And our customers just make me want to come to work every day.' Selection criteria included growth, success, and commitment to Window World's core values and competition was tough. 'They take an entire year to look at all kinds of stores. In fact, over 200 stores in the entire country are up for this award. And we have seven of those 200 stores,' said Window World of Youngstown owner Pat Moran. 'They look at things like, how do you pay your bills? What is your Better Business Bureau rating? What is your Google rating? What are your customers saying about you?' This year four out of the seven stores the Morans own won the award because all four of the stores were in the top echelon of Window World so they gave it to all four of the stores. Those four locations include Youngstown, Pittsburgh, West Virginia and Toledo. 'When we got it, all I could think about was the hard work that my dad and my grandpa had put into building this company because that's really the backbone–how they started it and how they invested in having a great company for our customers, for our employees,' said Fluck. 'So when we got this award, it just meant so much to us that our hard work did pay off.' The family says there are many reasons Window World is award-winning, but attributes most of their success to their employees. 'There's so many things that go into it. I attribute it to my employees,' said Moran. 'We all work together as a team. We have one goal and that goal is to make our customers happy.' 'They want to do a good job for our customers, which in turn shows it upon ourselves,' said Fluck. 'I think that's what really makes people want to work for us, is that we listen to them and we make them want to come to work and be positive and happy.' The company does little things for their employees including an awards dinner coming up in April. 'We invest in our people, in turn, they invest in us,' said Fluck. 'So when we got this award, I knew that it was our employees. They make the calls to the customers. They come to us with any issues they have, and we give them ideas on how to solve them. And that's what it all is about.' The Store of the Year award is just one of many the business has won over the years. 'During COVID, we won the Grenada award, which means that we're always about helping other stores within the Window World family helping customers. We've won the Ambassador Award,' said Moran. 'We do a lot of charity work. For instance, Akron Children's Hospital. We work with them. We work with St Jude Hospital. We work with the Beatitude House here in town or the Ursuline Sisters. We work with United Way.' Window World has also won awards for its commercials because, as you know, they stand on their windows. 'Standing on the windows came way back in the early days of Window World when it first started back in 1989 from Leon, who was the founder of Window World. He was the one who started standing on Windows,' said Moran. 'When we got involved with Window World in 2003, nobody was doing it. And I said that's crazy. We have to do that. That's ingenious. People will always remember us for standing on windows. So that's where that came from.' The Moran family is also training a service dog to give to a veteran. 'Liberty is our service dog that we're puppy training. Once she is ready to move on, they'll take her back to New York,' said Fluck. 'She'll go through a specific skill test and then eventually she'll go to a veteran in need.' No matter what is happening in the world, the future continues to look bright at Window World. 'We are remodeling our whole Youngstown showroom, and that's just going to help us to invite our customers and they can see our displays,' said Fluck. 'We're going to have a whole new signing area so you can come in, build your siding project from start to finish, see what your house is going to look like, and envision the possibilities for your home.' Overall, Fluck says, the company's goal remains the same. 'Just keep serving our customers, keep doing community work, and keep standing on our windows.' Window World is located at 8070 Southern Boulevard in Boardman. Call 877-280-5652 and visit them online at Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
