What Happens When Franchise Owners Show Up for Their Community | Franchise Friday with Jeff Dudan

Summary

Episode Overview

Episode Title: What Happens When Franchise Owners Show Up for Their Community | Franchise Friday with Jeff Dudan
Podcast: Unemployable with Jeff Dudan (Homefront Brands)
Release Date: March 13, 2026
Main Theme:
This episode spotlights how local franchise owners, specifically Homefront Brands’ Window Hero, step up to protect and uplift their communities. Jeff Dudan visits Ambassador Christian School in Huntersville, NC—a new institution founded by Melissa Gibbs—which is preparing for its first student intake. The show explores the installation of security film on school windows, demonstrates its real-world impact, and delves into why community involvement matters for franchise owners.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Origin & Vision of Ambassador Christian School

• Melissa Gibbs shares her journey of becoming a widow and reimagining her future ([02:03]):
  • Raised her family in Lake Norman, NC; lost her husband (formerly president of Joe Gibbs Racing) in 2019.
  • Returned to school for a counseling degree, aiming to help youth.
  • “By the time I got out in 2021, the landscape of education had really had some seismic shifts... didn't seem that public education... was going to be a good fit for me. And so that is how the ball got rolling... of starting a school.” ([02:03])
• The building (formerly a church) provided an ideal foundation for a high school with both performing arts and athletics ([03:40]).

2. Community Support & Franchise Engagement

• Jeff Dudan discusses how Homefront Brands and Window Hero became involved ([05:07]):

  • Noticed a $25,000 fundraising request for security film in the school’s needs.
  • “Window Hero is going to be rolling out security film. What if we came out and provided that for the school? So that's how that came about.” ([05:07])

• Melissa Gibbs on proactivity in school security ([05:43]):

  • “We want to be as prepared as we can be, as proactive as we can be. And that is the industry standard as far as keeping people out of the building.”
  • Emphasizes relieving anxiety for students:
    • “If we can take just even one thing off of the list of things that they worry about, then that's a gift.” ([07:46])

• Homefront Brands’ ongoing commitment to impact:

  • Partnership with Ben and Candy Carson (Carson Scholars), building reading rooms, and aiming to donate a million books by 2037 ([06:52]).

3. Security Film: Technical and Practical Aspects

• Hands-On Demonstration & Detailed Explanation

  • Segment with Jeff Dudan and Dylan, a Window Hero representative, at the warehouse testing the installed security film ([08:37]):
    • The film is multi-layered, thick, and designed to hold glass together under impact—protecting against break-ins and hurricanes.
    • “You can pound on it with a sledgehammer and it just... very difficult to get through” ([05:55], Jeff Dudan).
    • The film is installed on the inside of windows, with an adhesive bead around the edges for maximum security ([12:59]).
    • Testing with bats and bricks demonstrated the glass dents and spiderwebs but does not shatter or dislodge ([14:56]).

• Practical Benefits:

  • Also offers privacy options (clear vs. reflective film) ([13:32], Dylan).
  • Installs in a few days with minimal disruption ([12:54]).
  • Maintenance: “Really one and done solution. The main thing just getting windows cleaned, which we can take care of regularly.” ([11:43], Dylan)
  • Used for schools, commercial buildings, and even homes in coastal/hurricane-prone areas ([10:37], Dylan).

4. Franchise Owners Making a Difference

• The Window Hero installation was a multi-franchise, multi-state effort ([16:16]):

  • Teams from across NC & SC volunteered, some coming on their own time and dime.
  • “It was an all hands on deck effort... the amount of people who were willing to give of their time, and their talent, their resources... It was being done with such care and love.” ([16:16], Melissa Gibbs)

• Jeff Dudan underscores the ethos:

  • “We're a very values forward company. So our franchise owners believe in your mission. They're excited about the opportunity to help.” ([17:00])
  • Highlights need for local focus: “If you don't have to look outside of your immediate circle to see where there's need and where you can pitch in. It's neighbors helping neighbors. It's community based, and this is the perfect thing for us.” ([18:47])

5. Scholarships and the Importance of Accessibility

• About half of Ambassador Christian School’s students receive tuition assistance ([18:15]).
• Jeff Dudan announces the creation of the Homefront Brand Scholarship for the school, to aid students in need ([18:47]):
  • “We'd also like to establish a scholarship with your school, the Homefront brand scholarship, and to be able to sponsor some kids that have needs.”

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Melissa Gibbs:

  • “As the boys were getting older and starting to leave the nest and I could see widowhood approaching, I decided to go back to school and get a school counseling degree.” ([02:03])
  • “I have a partner and a board and a fantastic staff. There's no chance I could pull something like this off by myself.” ([03:40])
  • “It is a tough time to be a teenager ... if we can take just even one thing off of the list of things that they worry about, then that's a gift.” ([07:46])
  • On the Window Hero team: “It was being done with such care and love.” ([16:45])

• Jeff Dudan:

  • “Children are one of the three most important purposes at Homefront Brands and impacting future generations.” ([06:52])
  • “Our ability to help you with the security film, to help the school, give people comfort that, you know, they're safe inside, it’s very aligned with what matters to us at Home Front Brands.” ([07:25])
  • “We're a very values forward company. So our franchise owners believe in your mission. They're excited about the opportunity to help.” ([17:00])
  • On local community giving: “There's so many people that look at big causes and they step over the bodies of people that are right here in their community that need help to go help somewhere across the world.” ([18:47])

• Dylan (Window Hero):

  • On testing the security film: “I'm 100% sure. Unlike Elon Musk... I've seen it.” ([11:35])
  • “It's really just the thickness. And apply it all together.” ([10:12])
  • On project logistics: “On this project... with all of the windows, the different sizes... it did take a couple days... So for a project like this, it was only a couple days and we were able to get the main areas taken care of first.” ([12:15])

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• Melissa Gibbs origin story & school founding: [02:03–03:40]
• School tour and facility discussion: [03:40–04:23]
• How Homefront Brands/Window Hero got involved: [05:07–06:52]
• Discussion of Homefront Brands’ educational outreach: [06:52–07:46]
• Security film installation and technical breakdown: [08:37–14:24]
• Live demonstration of security film effectiveness: [14:30–15:55]
• Reflection on franchise team effort: [16:16–17:00]
• Tuition assistance and scholarship announcement: [18:15–18:47]
• Importance of community-based philanthropy: [18:47–20:04]

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Takeaways

• Community investment by franchise owners creates immediate and tangible benefits for local organizations.
• Technical solutions from franchise systems, such as security film, both illustrate the expertise of local owners and provide meaningful protection for vulnerable populations.
• Commitment to values-driven business is reinforced when franchisees and brands collaborate on projects with lasting impact, beyond simple transactions.
• Support for educational accessibility (tuition assistance, scholarships) is a cornerstone of Homefront Brands’ mission.
• Local action—neighbor helping neighbor—shouldn’t be overlooked in the search for ways to make a difference.

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This episode illustrates the multifaceted impact of franchise owners showing up for their communities—not merely as businesspeople, but as passionate partners in building a safer, better future.

Transcript

[Melissa Gibbs]

Seeing a need in the community and putting myself in the shoes of parents.

[Dylan]

Now as a dead of three kids. Anything you can do to help protect kids at school and just having that ability to have one extra layer to give police just enough time to make that next step to stop whatever's gonna happen.

[Jeff Duden]

We'd also like to establish a scholarship with your school. A homefront brand scholars. Boom. Hey, everybody. I'm Jeff Duden and today we are filming another episode of Heroes on the home front right here in our hometown of Huntersville, North Carolina. This is going to be a high flying, high tech, high impact episode featuring our great brand window hero. We're going to be installing security film. We're going to be flying drones and cleaning the exterior of the building. This is the Ambassador Christian School, which was founded by my very, very good friend Melissa Gibbs. And they are getting ready to welcome their inaugural class of students. So we're very excited to participate in this project. Melissa's done an incredible job. Our Window Hero franchisees are out there getting the work done. So let's go out there and check out what's going on at the Ambassador Christian School. Come with. Melissa. Hi. Hi. How are you? I'm good. So good to see you.

[Melissa Gibbs]

You too. My name is Melissa Gibbs and I am one of the co founders of Ambassador Christian School. My husband is. I should start over because I have to say was so I'll start all

[Jeff Duden]

the way back at the beginning.

[Melissa Gibbs]

I'm a mom of four sons and we raised our family here in the Lake Norman area over 30 years we've been here. My husband was the president of Joe Gibbs Racing. He's Joe Gibbs oldest son and he passed away in 2019. And it was something that we saw coming. It was degenerative disease that we knew was going to be terminal. So had some time to think about what the back nine of my life was going to look like since it was going to be very different than what I had always envisioned. As the boys were getting older and starting to leave the nest and I could see widowhood approaching, I decided to go back to school and get a school counseling degree. I have another degree in marriage and family counseling. But I didn't want to do that. I love high school. I love teenagers. I thought that would be the perfect blend. I can me a counselor in a school. I'll have my summers off one day when I'm a grandma, it'll be perfect. So I started in 2018 and by the time I got out in 2021, the landscape of education had really had some seismic shifts, and it didn't seem that public education, which had been my goal, which is to work in the local public high school, didn't seem like that was going to be a good fit for me. And so that is how the ball got rolling in my head of starting a school.

[Jeff Duden]

Congratulations, Melissa. I know this is an incredible project that you have worked very hard on.

[Melissa Gibbs]

Thank you. Me and a bunch of people. There's no chance I could pull something like this off by myself. I have a partner and a board and a fantastic staff. So the bones of this building, despite it being a church, were really well suited for a school. And so we've got this tremendous platform for a fantastic performing arts program. And then we've got the gym for our sports, and there are some athletic fields out back that we need to improve still. But we've got the bones to do everything that a really excellent high school would be able to pull off.

[Jeff Duden]

This is beautiful. Would you mind showing us some other areas of the school, maybe the gym and whatever else you think we ought to see? Good.

[Melissa Gibbs]

Love to.

[Jeff Duden]

Thank you. This all feels very new.

[Melissa Gibbs]

This floor was purple carpet.

[Jeff Duden]

Yes, that's right. See a ball, gotta have it. Boom. What's. What's it gonna be? When's it gonna drive? When's it gonna be done? End of the semester. Does anybody have their driver's license?

[Melissa Gibbs]

So these were seats under the balcony? I have no idea.

[Jeff Duden]

That's new. It's not a touchscreen. All right, so we're here. Do you call this the foyer or.

[Melissa Gibbs]

Yes.

[Jeff Duden]

Okay, so we're here in the foyer at Ambassador Christian school, and the window hero team from Homefront Brands has started installing security film. So the way that that came about is he sent out some information talking about the projects where people could support the school. We saw that there was a $25,000 item in there for security film, and I said, window hero is going to be rolling out security film. What if we came out and provided that for the school? So that's how that came about. What was the thinking around security film, and why did you have that as a list of something that you wanted to provide for the school?

[Melissa Gibbs]

We want to be as prepared as we can be, as proactive as we can be.

[Jeff Duden]

Right.

[Melissa Gibbs]

And that is the industry standard as far as keeping people out of the building.

[Jeff Duden]

Yeah. And security film is not necessarily ballistic film, where it's going to stop every bullet of every caliber or projectiles or things like that, but very difficult to actually get through security film. So you can pound on it with a sledgehammer and it just. It's very difficult to get through, so we're installing it here. We're also providing training for a half a dozen Window Hero franchisees. We've got our manufacturer on board with the project, so we're still going to support the school in other ways. But this was an easy win for us to get you something that was important enough for you to put into the ask.

[Melissa Gibbs]

I love it when it's a win win it is. And that it actually is of some benefit to window hero.

[Jeff Duden]

100%.

[Melissa Gibbs]

You could have done this for anybody. So I'm glad that the timing worked out, that you saw that we had a need and you could meet that in a way that was beneficial to the company as well. So love it 100%.

[Jeff Duden]

Children are one of the three most important purposes at Homefront Brands and impacting future generations. We're partnered with Ben and Candy Carson at Carson Scholars, and we're building two reading rooms this year across the country. We're going to build reading rooms every year in schools that are under resourced to provide a safe place for those children to gather and to read and really get exposed to books and all of that. And we have a mission by 2037 to give a million books to children. You know, we have to do everything that we possibly can to give the next generation all the protection, yet all of the freedom to grow into themselves and become independent, capable, contributing adults. And so our ability to help you with the security film, to help the school, give people comfort that, you know, they're safe inside, it's very aligned with what matters to us at home Front Bratz.

[Melissa Gibbs]

Well, there are enough struggles for teenagers. It's a tough time to be a teenager. It is a lot of anxiety, a lot of depression, a lot of loneliness. And so if we can take just even one thing off of the list of things that they worry about, then that's a gift.

[Jeff Duden]

Yes. Melissa, thank you so much. This has been a great day. It's our first day on the project. I really appreciate you taking the time to share your vision for what this school is, what it's going to be and what it's going to mean to the community. We're going to go back to Homefront Brands now, but in a couple of weeks, I'd like to come back and check on the progress, see the completed project and maybe be here when the school opens. Is that okay?

[Melissa Gibbs]

That'd be wonderful. And again, thank you for believing in Ambassador and wanting to wink Arms with us and make this all that it

[Jeff Duden]

can be impacting future generations.

[Melissa Gibbs]

Right.

[Jeff Duden]

Awesome. Thank you. Dylan, how are you doing? Good, good. Great job out at the Ambassador Christian School. We just got back from there. We installed security film on all the windows. We're back here in the warehouse and we're looking to test the durability of these windows. What are your thoughts on how we should do that?

[Dylan]

Well, I got a bat, we got some cinder blocks. Let's test these windows out.

[Jeff Duden]

Okay. Let's see. And this would be like a real life test. So we did the same installation on these windows that a Window Hero franchisee would do at a school or a commercial building.

[Dylan]

Yes. So same film. It's a certain thickness that allows the glass not to shatter. So as you hit that bat, it's not going to fully shatter and allow you to break through.

[Jeff Duden]

Okay, can you tell me a little bit about the installation process and maybe a little bit about the material? Yeah.

[Dylan]

So this material, it's a very thick material. And so when we're applying this onto the glass, we're going to clean that glass, we're going to put that film on. One of the most important parts is we do have to put a bead around. And what that does is it adheres the glass, the film, to the edging of that in the frame of that window, which creates that surface to be secure.

[Jeff Duden]

Okay. So if you didn't have the bead around it, I was thinking you hit the window, it stays together, but the whole thing just falls in.

[Dylan]

Yeah. So that bead, what it does is it connects it all together so that way the glasses doesn't fall through. And it's going to allow for time to where, if someone's trying to get into a building, for the police and authorities to get there and take care of the situation.

[Jeff Duden]

Okay, outstanding. And what is this film made of? Do you have any idea? Or is it some super secret nano ceramic airplane technology?

[Dylan]

So solar film. So it's the same material, but it's thicker. So it's an 8 mil. It can go all the way up to 20 mil. So it's really the thickness of that material. So it's very similar. Just the thickness. And apply it all together.

[Jeff Duden]

Okay, so when you say solar film, like they use on solar panels.

[Dylan]

No, it's solar film referred to tint. Tint, yes.

[Jeff Duden]

Okay. All right, well, outstanding. And what type of applications does WindowHero install this window film?

[Dylan]

Commercial buildings, schools. So think about entrances into schools or commercial buildings.

[Jeff Duden]

Okay.

[Dylan]

Even down in coastal areas onto Homes to prevent hurricanes and things like that. It's a lot more cost savings in those areas than getting hurricane shutters.

[Jeff Duden]

Okay. And I would also think anywhere that there's high traffic area where if a glass does break, they don't want it to shatter and fall on the occupants as well.

[Dylan]

So think about public spaces, stadiums, malls, anything like that.

[Jeff Duden]

With this particular product, when applied, how does it disperse force when it's hit by a blunt object?

[Dylan]

So because you have that film on the glass and all the glasses adhere gears to kind of one surface, what's going to happen is when you hit, it may dent in, but it's not going to break through.

[Jeff Duden]

Okay.

[Dylan]

So just like a normal window, like behind you, if you took a bat to it, it's going to shatter everywhere and allow you to get in. Whereas this is going to take that impact, absorb it and not allow you to break all the way through.

[Jeff Duden]

Okay. And that's in theory, I think it will work. Okay, you think it will work? Yeah. You're absolutely. Almost sure?

[Dylan]

I'm 100 sure. Unlike Elon Muskala, as seen it.

[Jeff Duden]

Oh, okay. Once this product is installed, is there any ongoing maintenance or is it a one and done solution?

[Dylan]

So really one and done solutions. The main thing just getting windows cleaned, which we can take care of regularly. Once that's done, that's your maintenance.

[Jeff Duden]

Awesome. Fantastic. The Ambassador Christian School 70,000 square foot building with windows on the entire ground floor, which we did in a couple of days. Yeah. So what's the typical installation look like for this product? How long does it take and how intrusive is it disruptive is it to the ongoing operations of wherever we're installing?

[Dylan]

Yeah, it's really simple. So like I said earlier, we're going to clean that glass traditionally. We're then going to put this film on. You do have to wait about a day to be able to put the bead around the glass. And so really a lot of it's going to be the amount of windows you have. So in this situation with all of the windows, the different sizes and things like that, it did take a couple days to be able to apply the film.

[Jeff Duden]

Sure.

[Dylan]

Allow that to all dry properly, make sure there were any spots or anything we needed to fix. And then we applied that bead. So for a project like this, it was only a couple days and we were able to get the main areas taken care of first. So that way students and everybody could come in and out and not have to be concerned about where we were and disrupting the normal Flow of the day.

[Jeff Duden]

Okay. Obvious question. Some people might be asking, does this go on the outside or the inside of the.

[Dylan]

Great question.

[Jeff Duden]

Is it?

[Dylan]

I've had a lot of people ask that question. It actually goes on the inside of the window. So this way, as someone's hitting on the outside, it's actually preventing anything from going in. Whereas if it were reversed, obviously, you would think that, hey, well, maybe that's better. But in this situation, it's meant to go on the inside. There are some applications where you would apply on both.

[Jeff Duden]

Okay.

[Dylan]

But majority of the time, it's just on the inside.

[Jeff Duden]

Okay. Now, in this particular window, are we looking at the film or is the film on the back of the window?

[Dylan]

We're looking at the film here. So we did double it on this. This window here, but you're looking at it. So it gives that reflective feel.

[Jeff Duden]

Okay.

[Dylan]

So it's also privacy. So for the. For the school, on some of the windows, we did do this style of film. So that way people couldn't see in. So what that does is allows people not to see where the students are, see where anybody is in any type of situation.

[Jeff Duden]

All right, so is that an option? It is. So it's an option whether it's reflective or you can see through it. Yep.

[Dylan]

So on the front of the school, we did clear, just due to lulls and things like that. And on the sides, we did the reflective.

[Jeff Duden]

Dylan, are you familiar with the types of testing that this product's gone through or certifications that it's passed?

[Dylan]

Yeah. So really cool thing is, we have a great partner with Hooper Optics and Edge who supplies our material. They've done extensive testing on this product ahead of time with batts, with cinder blocks and things like that to ensure that the product they're selling. Selling is working. And so that's one really great thing with this partner is they've kind of done a lot of that testing for us so that we are confident in installing this.

[Jeff Duden]

Awesome. Awesome. Well, I don't know about you, but I'm ready to crush some glass.

[Dylan]

Let's do it.

[Jeff Duden]

Yeah. Or maybe not. That's right. All right, we'll see. Oh, that's a solid triple. All right, so look what we've got here is this is the point of impact, and then it's basically a spider web out, but not one piece of this glass on the front. And these are not.

[Dylan]

You can take your hand and.

[Jeff Duden]

Oh, geez. I was afraid to do that. Yeah. These are not sharp edges.

[Dylan]

No.

[Jeff Duden]

Wow. How safe was that? It didn't separate from the frame. I gave it a pretty good leg. You did, yeah. Impact test number two. It passed the bat test, but will it pass the brick test? I think it will, but let's find out. This brings me back to know it's just a wee lad in Chicago in the garment district. Well, Did not go through. Just came back from Homefront Brands. We installed security film on a variety of windows. I got various implements of destruction. I think it's going to hold up really well for you.

[Melissa Gibbs]

Wonderful.

[Jeff Duden]

Awesome.

[Melissa Gibbs]

Hopefully we never find out.

[Jeff Duden]

We're so thankful that you gave us the opportunity to come out and put security film on the ground floor windows of the entire building and also to fly our lucid bot drones up and clean the exterior of the building. What is your experience with WindowHero during that process?

[Melissa Gibbs]

Well, I was here for many of the days when your team came and there were. I don't know how many there were, but teams from all over North Carolina and South Carolina, as I understand it came to contribute to this project. So there were at times probably 20 guys here from Window Hero working on things we. Which was really amazing, the amount of people who were willing to give of their time and their talent, their resources. So it was an all hands on deck effort. I know you had your rep here.

[Jeff Duden]

That's right.

[Melissa Gibbs]

And so we had the top line information and training that was going into this project. So it was a great feeling of knowing it was being done well and it was being done with such care and love.

[Jeff Duden]

It was a real win win situation. Because first of all, we're a very values forward company. So our franchise owners believe in your mission. They're excited about the opportunity to help. So they were able to come in on their own dime, stay overnight if they needed to, invest their time with their crew out here, pay their people to install the film. Our manufacturing partner gave us the film to be able to do it. And then it was also, it's a win for you because now the children are safer. There is a barrier to the inside from people trying to get in. So I think it was just the perfect project at the perfect time. When you send out the fundraiser and I'm looking through it and I saw the $25,000 line item for security film and I was like, wait a minute. Yes, that's the perfect line. It's my favorite. And it probably. I don't even think it could have got it done for that, to be honest with you. I think some of the bids were probably a little bit higher than that. So to be able to do that and have it be a win, win, win was really fantastic.

[Melissa Gibbs]

Yes.

[Jeff Duden]

A little bit about the students. Are they all. This is a private school, so there's tuition. I know you've raised a lot of money from people that believe in the mission. Are there students that are on tuition assistance?

[Melissa Gibbs]

Absolutely.

[Jeff Duden]

Okay.

[Melissa Gibbs]

50% of our students are on some form of tuition. Tuition assistance. There's a continuum to that, and it's all based on need. And so we are actively raising money for a tuition assistance fund. And we have some people who've committed to contribute to that on an annual basis. And some of it we just grab here and there. Some of it comes out of our budget. The donations that we get, we have to allocate some to that because it's really important to us that this kind of education is accessible to all who want it.

[Jeff Duden]

So I know that we talked inside a little bit about our affiliation with Carson Scholars and that we're building reading rooms for underfunded schools to provide books in a safe place for children to read. We'd also like to establish a scholarship with your school, the Homefront brand scholarship, and to be able to sponsor some kids that have needs. So I'd like to work with you on that. And it can be an annual sponsorship that we can do, and maybe that will just help. Every little bit helps. Thank you. Yeah, you're so welcome. We're very excited about that. And, I mean, people go all over the world to help with things. And we just had this disaster in western North Carolina, Hurricane Helene, and, you know, there's so many people that look at big causes and they step over the bodies of people that are right here in their community that need help to go help somewhere across the. Across the world. But if you don't have to look outside of your immediate circle to see where there's need and where you can pitch in. It's neighbors helping neighbors. It's community based, and this is the perfect thing for us. Well, this has been amazing, and thank you for putting Window Hero up on the scoreboard. Yeah, I forgot to show you that. Yeah, we got our. We got a scoreboard endorsement, so. And I know the teams are doing exceptionally well. Well, thank you so much for the opportunity. So much of what. What we're doing in Window Hero started right here with you.

[Melissa Gibbs]

Please use us as a continual testing ground for whatever new technology you're trying to get out there.

[Jeff Duden]

This is why property services are the most durable thing, because people always need these things. So, yeah, Melissa, thank you so much.

[Melissa Gibbs]

Oh, thank you.

[Jeff Duden]

Yep. What an incredible experience working Alongside Melissa Gibbs, WindowHero and the amazing team at Ambassador Christian School. Seeing firsthand the impact of this project, from the installation of the protective window film to the heartfelt conversations with reminds me why we do what we do at home Front brands.