Charlemagne candidate Brian McNally built his life and business around his hometown

Pick any event in St. Charles in the past decade, from nonprofit fundraisers to holiday parades, and it’s a safe bet that McNally Heating and Cooling sponsored it. While you’ve undoubtedly seen his name via his company’s logo around town, the man behind the business’ generosity and commitment to his city is Brian McNally.

McNally is one of three nominees for the 2025 Charlemagne Award, presented by the St. Charles Chamber of Commerce. This year, the Chamber has invited the community to vote for the winner.

McNally, unlike his branding, tends to stay out of the public eye, supporting instead behind the scenes. This won’t be the case for the next month, however, with McNally having been nominated for the city’s highest honor – the Charlemagne Award.

McNally came to St. Charles in 1994 as a fourth grade student, having spent his formative years in Itasca. He attended Ferson Creek Elementary and graduated from St. Charles East High School in 2001.

McNally wasted no time starting his career. He was Environmental Protection Agency certified as an HVAC technician by age 18, which he managed to earn by attending high school courses for half the day and trade school on the side.

As soon as he graduated, McNally went into the HVAC industry and spent 11 years working and gaining experience before starting McNally’s in 2012.

What started as a local small business and a trailer parked off Dean Street has grown to become an industry leader across several counties in only 13 years.

McNally’s business outgrew the trailer in about a year, so he bought his first storefront downtown in 2013. Since then, McNally’s has continued to outgrow its facilities, forcing three moves so far with plans to build a new facility in St. Charles this year.

McNally’s Heating and Cooling now employs more than 50 people, and its service area spans across five counties, extending north into McHenry County, west to DeKalb County, south to Kendall County and east to Cook County. McNally said what keeps him and his family in St. Charles is the sense of community and hometown pride.

McNally said his involvement with community events began with parades and Chamber events after becoming a Chamber member in 2014 and never stopped growing from there. Today, McNally sponsors dozens of events in St. Charles every year, from community art shows to charitable events for nonprofits such as Lazarus House, CASA Kane County, Big Hearts of Fox Valley and many more.

“We started to become a more prevalent sponsor over the years,” McNally said. “As my business grew, we just started becoming more involved and getting involved in different kinds of nonprofits.”

One of the biggest programs McNally’s sponsors is the Feel the Love event, where for the past three years, McNally has partnered with HVAC giant Lennox to install brand-new HVAC systems to families in need of comfort, free of charge.

Through the program, Lennox selects recipients from across the country and provides the systems. Partnering dealers such as McNally donate their time and resources to provide the installation.

In addition to using his business to give back to the community, McNally also gives a great deal of his personal time to St. Charles, serving as an executive committee member of the St. Charles Business Alliance and vice president of the St. Charles History Museum.

McNally also contributes to the schools he was educated in, giving back to students by assisting with programs such as St. Charles East High School’s Shark Tank and HVAC shadow programs.

“I just felt like I probably had gained a lot from the community, like the community had supported me through my growth and I just found it rewarding to give back,” McNally said.

The list of community programs, nonprofits and events he’s supported, whether through sponsorships or by volunteering his time, stretches far beyond the city limits of St. Charles.

McNally’s business also is a member of the chambers of commerce in Geneva, Batavia, Naperville, Oswego, northern Kane County, Wheaton and Elgin, where he supports dozens of additional nonprofits and community events each year.

McNally said he chose to stay and start his family in St. Charles because of the positive experience he had in his youth.

“When I started a family, I just wanted them to have the same experience that I had in the community,” McNally said. “It still has a small-town feel, everybody looks out for each other, the business community is very supportive of each other. It just feels like everybody wants to see everybody succeed.”

McNally has attended the annual Charlemagne Awards ceremony for the past decade, but never guessed he would be in the running for the community’s biggest award.

“It comes as a total surprise,” McNally said. “It’s just such an honor to even be mentioned as a nominee when I look at the people who have received the award before me.”

McNally said winning the Charlemagne Award would be an incredible honor and extremely humbling, and would encourage him to continue the work he’s been doing.

While he refrained from campaigning for votes, McNally said, historically, Charlemagne Award recipients are pillars of the community, and said residents should “vote for the nominee that you think has the best merits.”

The 57th annual Charlemagne Awards soiree will be from 6 to 10 p.m. Friday, May 2, at the Royal Fox Country Club, 4405 Royal and Ancient Drive in St. Charles. Cost is $175 a person. The deadline to register to attend is April 26.