Better
Business Bureau HONORS Omaha’s
2010 Business and Student Integrity Award
WINNERS
Better Business Bureau and the BBB Foundation today
honored Omaha’s
2010 BBB Integrity Award Winners at BBB’s annual awards luncheon at the Embassy
Suites Omaha – La Vista Conference Center. This “Ethics Olympics” event was
attended by over 750 people. The keynote speaker, Holly Petraeus, director of
BBB Military Line and wife of Army General David Petraeus, commander of U.S. and NATO Forces in Afghanistan was
introduced by the Integrity Awards Speaker Sponsor Gail DeBoer, president of
SAC Federal Credit Union.
The six local Winners of these prestigious awards
were announced by videos produced by the event’s Media Sponsor KETV. They are
Monarch Siding and Windows, Inc., Stiles Services, Total Construction Services,
Inc., Early Out Services, Inc. and Certified Transmission. In addition, Make-A-Wish
Foundation of Nebraska was selected in the charity category. These
organizations range in size from less than 5 employees to over
100 employees and have received this award for upholding the highest standards
of business ethics.
Jim
Hegarty, chief executive officer of BBB serving Nebraska,
South Dakota and southwest Iowa stated, “In today’s challenging economic
climate, honesty and integrity are more important than ever. He added, “This year’s award recipients,
selected by independent panels of judges, represent what is best about business
in metro Omaha.
These organizations have solid business practices, based on a commitment to
serve their customers with the highest standard of ethics. They have built successful companies because
of the trust that has been established, and the BBB Integrity Awards recognize
their leadership in the community.”
BBB
Communications Director Margo Riekes
added, “The Integrity Award’s judges felt that the overall quality of this
year’s applicants was very strong. Therefore, other Integrity Award candidates who
demonstrated, through the application process, that they placed a high priority
on honesty and integrity in the work place were recognized with Silver Awards
of Distinction and Bronze Awards of Merit. They also serve as ambassadors for quality
customer service, and the BBB is proud to make these special designations.”
The Award
of Distinction recipients include: B
Street Collision
Center, Merchants Credit
Adjusters, H & H Chevrolet, Nebraska Furniture Mart and the Food Bank for
the Heartland. The organizations that received an Award of Merit are: The
Filter Shop, Millard Sprinkler, Inc. and Ronald McDonald House Charities in Omaha.
In
addition, the first BBB Student Service Excellence Awards were granted to five
outstanding high school students. This new annual program, funded by the BBB
Foundation, was created to promote and recognize character, school, and
community service. For these awards, all high schools in the metro Omaha area were
invited to identify 10th graders that were selected as Rotary Honor
Roll students when they were in the 8th grade, and who exemplify the
values of the Better Business Bureau and Rotary – personal integrity, ethical
behavior, leadership and academic achievement. “These awards seek to keep
ethics alive in the minds of Rotary Honor Roll Students during their high
school years,” said Presenter Gary Bren, president elect, Downtown Rotary.
All
applications were submitted to an independent panel of judges that selected the
2010 Winners who were asked to designate a charity they wished to honor-a
reflection of their integrity and commitment to service. This year five
students were presented with an award. In addition, a check for $200 from the
BBB Foundation will be sent to each student’s designated charity in their name.
The
Winners of the BBB Student Service Excellence Awards are: Grace Bartels,
Brownell-Talbot and Ralph Hauke, Creighton Prep who chose Siena Francis House; Courtney
Collins, Benson High School and Jake Wiepen, Skutt Catholic High School
selected the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation; and Reagan Huber, Burke
High School picked the Open Door Mission.