As manager of service operations for Xerox Corporation in Mississippi and Louisiana, Ken Walk thought he had seen just about every type of equipment installation possible. Until a rather unusual order landed on his desk.

"The job was to deliver several Xerox systems to a medical clinic in Biloxi, Miss. Not only was the building under construction, but the building didn't exist five days before. Also, the delivery and staging for this install had to be done in secrecy because the workers at the clinic had no idea that we were coming."

Why the secrecy? To help give a pleasant surprise and welcome relief to victims of the 2005 hurricanes.

Early in 2006, Xerox was contacted by ABC's Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. A top-rated Sunday television program that normally renovates homes for deserving families across the U.S., Extreme Makeover decided to do something special for those affected by Hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma. Instead of building new homes, they rebuilt places like churches, clinics and fire stations – buildings that served as focal points for neighborhoods.

These places are also businesses with document needs. So in addition to the Coastal Community Health Center in Biloxi, Xerox provided document systems, service and supplies to a Little League field in Boynton Beach, Fla.; a church in New Orleans; and a fire house/police station in Sabine Pass, Texas.

Deidra Williams, Xerox marketing manager for Xerox's Florida and Georgia operations, facilitated the company's donation to the Boynton Beach Little League – and is all too familiar with the effects of the recent hurricanes. "My extended family is originally from New Orleans and lost 10 homes during Hurricane Katrina," said Williams.

When ABC presented the opportunity to help restore a local "field of dreams" devastated by Hurricane Wilma, Williams jumped at the chance.

"We donated a WorkCentre C2424 multifunction system and a FaxCentre F110 fax machine that will serve all the document needs for the field's administrative staff as well as reporters attending each game," said Williams. "It's a small part of the larger project, but we're happy to do what we can to bring this field back to the community."

Those thoughts were also shared by Ken Walk, who was at the Coastal Community Health Center in Biloxi when the doctors and nurses saw their new clinic for the first time. One of the last remaining free health clinics in the Biloxi area, the building was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina. Since the storm, the clinic has been operating out of a double-wide trailer – and serving twice the normal patient load.

For this makeover project, ABC constructed a state-of-the-art medical facility with the most advanced equipment, including a Xerox WorkCentre M118i basic multifunction system; a WorkCentre M20i system that can copy, print, color fax, and color scan to e-mail; and a Phaser 6120 color laser printer.

"It's truly amazing what can be done in five days," said Walk. "We had to deliver our systems in secret to a separate address so the surprise wasn't revealed to the clinic workers. We then had to wait until the construction, electrical work and wiring was complete before installing each machine – just one day before the finished project was revealed."

"Our systems will help them operate at a higher level," he added, "which means that more people will receive the care they need."

Chester Winburn, field manager of technical service, managed the installation of a Xerox WorkCentre C2424 color multifunction system for the New Orleans church makeover. "We help our customers reach their goals in different ways every day," said Winburn. "Doing my job in a way that helps those in need feels great…and really makes me proud to be Xerox."

Learn more about the Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.