Nanette Bittler balances a family, manages five fast-food restaurants, and uses her franchises to donate money and Happy Meals back to the community.

Bittler’s McDonald’s of Bend runs more than 20 philanthropic programs geared toward children. The School Reading program, for example, delivers a free Happy Meal to each student in a class if the entire class signs up for a Bend Public Library card. This reading incentive program has given more than 2,500 meals in its first 10 years.

Bittler, 41, started her mini-empire after buying a McDonald’s in Bend in 1989. In 1990, her parents sold her the one they had bought in 1973, the first Bend McDonald’s.

So why own McDonald’s?

There’s so many positives about McDonald’s. I grew up with it, with my parents owning the first Bend franchise since 1973. You look at the number of people you interact with, the customers to the crew, and the influence you can have, really, in a community. With the national and global recognition,there’s so much we can do here; we can make a difference I think.

As a local business, it’s really our responsibility to be a leader and show social responsibility. If everyone felt that way, just think of the changes that could make in the community. (McDonald’s) has allowed me a vehicle to do that.

Do your employees have extra training other McDonald’s might not have?

There’s the basic McDonald’s training, but the level of execution depends on the owner. We really support and crosstrain our employees in the different stations. But it’s more than just that, it’s understanding their role as part of a team.

For example, for many employees, this is their first job. They need to understand the importance of showing up on time, coming when they’re scheduled. It’s not a matter of, oh, I’m five minutes late,’ but what did that impact have on their fellow team member?’ Or what impact did that have on a customer?’ It teaches them values and skills they can carry for a lifetime.

What’s the average age of your employees?

About a third of the employees are in high school or college.

I want to be considered one of the premier organizations to work for in Central Oregon.

The flexibility is great. If a college student says I need next week off for finals, we can do that. We have a simple IRA (retirement plan) for all employees.

We match dollar for dollar their contribution. There is a dependent care program where we reimburse employees $1.00 an hour tax-free for one child in daycare or $1.25 for two or more. Also, for more and more workers having elderly parents that might require day care, this allows them to get back into the work force. We also send them to classes where they can get college credit, in addition to vacation, health insurance, and other benefits.

Do a lot of other McDonald’s offer these benefits?

It’s an individual owner-operator decision. I believe if you really invest in your people and take care of them, they’re going to take care of you.

This shows up in your turnover rate?

Absolutely. We’re significantly lower (less than 100 percent) than the industry standard (around 160 percent a year).

Tell me about McTeachers’ Night.

For three hours, teachers work shoulder to shoulder with our crew. Students come in and get to watch their teacher take their order, clean the tables, make the hamburgers, and we donate a portion (20 percent) of the proceeds, or minimum $500 to the school. Everybody has a lot of fun.

What’s the feedback from parents?

One time I went to the Ronald McDonald house. There’s only about 212 in the world, and there’s one here. A woman came up to me and gave me the hugest hug. She said, I can’t thank you enough for bringing the house here; I stayed here while my daughter was in the hospital.’

Tell me about your efforts with the Ronald McDonald house.

The community owns it. It’s a home away from home for families of seriously injured children while they’re in the hospital.

It started 14 years ago. There was a really bad oil spill in the Ronald McDonald house in Portland. We did a walk-a-thon here to help with the house. St. Charles gave a great donation. We said, how do we bring one to Bend?’ We did a feasibility study and found our children here aren’t as seriously ill, but more than half traveled from outside the tri-county area.

It was a 10-year process to open. We opened the house just about debt-free for the past five years.

Would you say you’re a businesswoman first or a philanthropist?

I’m first a businesswoman. Your business has to succeed and be healthy in order for you to have the opportunity to do this type of work in the community.

What’s the competitive atmosphere of fast food restaurants in Bend like?

We have a great deal of competition in Bend. The last couple years, it’s been very hard. The economy’s really slowed down, along with a lot of global events that certainly impacted the way people have spent money. This year, every one of our restaurants is on a significant increase.

How many customers do you get a day?

Most restaurants average 1000-plus transactions a day. At two to three customers a transaction, it’s maybe 2500 customers per day per store.

What motivates you?

I love what I’m doing. I enjoy the people I’m working with. I wouldn’t want to go through life and not do this. It’s the right thing to do.

Chris Young can be reached at 541-383-0350 or at cyoung@bendbulletin.com.