At Goodwill’s 2017 Annual Celebration Awards Banquet, we celebrated the lives changed in communities across Kansas as we recognized outstanding program participants, board members, staff and community leaders for their accomplishments. Find out more about our award recipients below.
This distinguished award was established in 2004 by Ric Knorr, a former Goodwill Board member, and his wife Darlene, to recognize an outstanding employee who performs well above job expectations and exemplifies the values and standards of entrepreneurship and financial responsibility in carrying out the mission of Goodwill, as did former CEO Marie Mareda for whom the award is named. The winner receives a monetary gift and his or her name will be added to a permanent plaque in the Goodwill administrative office. Becky joined Goodwill in April of 2011. She started as the Assistant Manager for the Maize store and in January of 2016 was promoted to Manager of the store near 37th and Oliver, also known as “the plant” since that is where the warehouse is also located. As the manager of the Plant store, which at the time was faced with declining sales, she worked to turn things around, and within just four months, she and her team had stopped the decline. In her first full fiscal year as the manager, the store generated a 5.4% increase, while keeping operating expenses flat! In addition to managing revenues and expenses, her team has praised her for always doing anything that she asks others to do. She works the donation door, processes and sorts donations, runs the register, cleans out dressing rooms and is helpful and supportive of her team in any way possible. This year’s honoree is patient and kind in training members of the Goodwill Mobile Crew – employees from the skills development program who come to assist in the stores. She truly exemplifies the mission of Goodwill every day.
Eva has worked for Goodwill since early 2013 in our Education and Training Department, now known as NexStep Alliance. As the office manager, her main duties are tracking inventory and budgets, placing orders, sending invoices, creating rosters, and scheduling assessments in the Pearson Vue Test Center. But, tonight’s honoree has become known for much, much more. Each day, as students, certified instructors and staff pass her desk, she welcomes them with a smile and a heartfelt greeting. This simple act of kindness puts guests at ease, and allows them to focus on completing the tasks at hand. Her coworkers say that she is patient and kind, and always willing to help – pulling lists, taking calls in Spanish, or explaining the process to a new student. Outside of work, she steps in to help in other ways – from assisting as a foster grandparent to ministering to women in a correctional facility – it is easy to see that this honoree values each person and is living the mission of providing opportunities to others.
This award is given to the Goodwill retail store manager who, over the past year, has shown leadership and stood apart from their peers. Shelley has been a Goodwill store manager for five years and during this time has overseen steady growth in store sales. This year, the store realized an overall increase in sales by 4.5% with no increase in expenses. An ongoing commitment to team members and the success of the store makes her the perfect “point-person” for her territory.
The South Broadway store experienced a 9.50%, increase in total sales over last year, reaching the highest sales level in the store’s history, while holding expenses to a mere 1.0% increase. In addition, this team works together to make things happen. The positive attitudes towards making changes translated into higher sales and an improved experiences for the customers and donors.
The most important thing to most employers is having dependable employees. These are the people that show up every day, ready to work. Christa is one of those people. She comes into work every day and tries very hard to have a positive, ready to get the job done attitude. She never turns down a job and will volunteer to help staff when others have refused.
This honor is given to the employee who, during the past year, has worked to support their peers and staff. Marie is always ready to work and helps support and encourage those around her. As our Participant Advisory Council President, she is always looking for ways to improve and encourages her peers to do the same. She has become the person of choice when there is an opening to fill on the Goodwill mobile crew because of her willingness and ability to get along with others. She takes her role as a leader very seriously and strives to set a good example for others.
This award goes to a newcomer who has performed above expectations during their first year of work. This year’s honoree has been an excellent addition to the organizational employment team. Kristian is always ready to work and will seek out additional job opportunities. With a great sense of humor, he is always looking for new skills that he can learn and new jobs he can try out. Affectionately nicknamed “Krispy Kreme,” he is a leader to his peers and can be a huge help in getting them motivated to work alongside him.
Anyone who has visited Goodwill’s contract division is likely to know Debra and can attest to her friendly, enthusiastic attitude. She loves to celebrate accomplishments and takes great pride in a job well done. She often has a kind word for those who need a lift in their day and will be the first to line up to give you a high five when a milestone is reached.
Much like our most enthusiastic award winner, the Ms. Congeniality award winner is a friendly and congenial person. Stephanie gets along with everyone and is quick with a smile and a friendly word. Always ready to work, no matter the job, her positive attitude is infectious and all of her peers enjoy working with her.
This award is for the employee who has shown the most improvement in their work ethic and attitude during the past year. As we looked back over the last year, one name stood out above the rest when it comes to improvement. Daniel has shown improvements in his work ethic and attitude, but he has also come a long ways with his anger management and has refrained from aggressive behaviors. We look forward to seeing even more improvements from him in the future.
For the past several years, Westar Energy has served as the Premier Sponsor of Cajun Food Fest – and has sponsored at some level for both Annual Dinner and Blue Jean Bingo. In addition, when we presented the idea of the Mobile STEM Lab, they were eager to pitch in. But, it is not just the financial support… Over the years, Westar has had a board member to help lead the agency. And, when the current board member, Jimmy Martinez, learned about the Edgar James sewing department, he connected his company purchasers with us – and now we supply them with safety vests. Thank you Jimmy and Westar Energy for your continued support of Goodwill!
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