Blue Ridge Bestows Top Honors on Award-Winning Employees
For Immediate Release
Contact: Renee Whitener, Director of Corporate Communications, Blue Ridge Electric Membership Corporation, (828) 758-2383 ext. 3213; Pager:1-800-471-1323; or E-mail: Renee Whitener
Boone, North Carolina (November 5, 2002) – Just as television has the Emmys and music has the Grammy’s, Blue Ridge Electric Membership Corporation has its own “night for the stars” once a year with a special awards presentation recognizing outstanding employees.
Four very special individuals went down in Blue Ridge history as they received awards Saturday evening during the company’s employee service awards celebration held at Broyhill Inn and Conference Center in Boone. Awards for spirit, community service, and overall operational excellence were presented to employees of Blue Ridge Electric and its subsidiary, Blue Ridge Energies.
“There is no higher honor; these individuals are nominated by their co-workers—their peers,” said Doug Johnson, chief executive officer of Blue Ridge Electric.
Winner of the Touchstone Commitment to Community Award:
Winner of the Touchstone Commitment to Community Award was Chuck Troutman, director of employee development.
The Touchstone Commitment to Community Award is given to an employee of either Blue Ridge Electric or Blue Ridge Energies who best demonstrates the Touchstone
Energy and Blue Ridge value for outstanding leadership in local communities. The key to the winner of this award is that they tangibly demonstrate a “servant’s heart and attitude” and are also known for their honesty, integrity, and ability to build morale and team spirit among co-workers as well as within their community.
Troutman has a long history of community involvement, most recently as president of the Lenoir Rotary Club. During this tenure, Troutman has presented programs and helped raise funds to support the Rotary program for eradicating polio in the far corners of the earth. His fundraising efforts also include the Rotary effort to provide wheelchairs to the needy in areas such as Guatemala, where he’ll travel this December to make deliveries.
Troutman also volunteered for 14 years with the Boy Scouts of America, serving in capacities such as Clubmaster, Piedmont Council member and assistant scoutmaster, scoutmaster for the Philmont Scout Reservation Troop in New Mexico, regional public health and safety officer, and involvement in the national Boy Scout Jamboree.
He has also held leadership roles in volunteer efforts such as United Way, American Red Cross, Jaycees, American Heart Association, and the American Cancer Society. Troutman also served six years with the North Carolina National Guard, where he trained and served as a combat medic.
In honor of his recognition, Troutman received a hand formed lead crystal award on an engraved brushed metal base. He also received a cash award.
Two Winners of the Touchstone Overall Excellence Awards
Two Touchstone Overall Excellence Awards were also announced Saturday. These awards are designed to give special recognition to two employees—one from Blue Ridge Electric and one from Blue Ridge Energies—who demonstrate exceptional customer service, accountability, and operational excellence.
The recipients of this award are selected for meeting strict criteria, including responding to customer needs in a timely manner, finding new and innovative ways of meeting customer and co-worker needs, and helping build relationships with the members and customers served by Blue Ridge Electric and Blue Ridge Energies. Winners also demonstrate honesty and integrity, have a strong commitment to their fellow co-workers, and make valuable contributions to the company and co-workers.
Winner of the Blue Ridge Energies Touchstone Overall Excellence Award is Scott Eggers, operations manager for the Watauga and Ashe offices of Blue Ridge Energies.
Eggers is known as a true innovator and expert in the energy field. Co-workers who nominated him said Eggers “pours his heart and soul into serving our members and customers”—going out of his way at all hours of the day or night to meet customer needs. His reputation is one of “getting in the trenches” and doing whatever necessary to get the job done. Co-workers also described Eggers as always ready to lend a helping hand to a fellow employee.
His commitment to the energy field and his profession became even more evident when he was asked about two years ago to oversee the Watauga and Ashe operations for Blue Ridge Energies—a role which he has taken on with great success.
His nominators say what makes Eggers shine is his genuine care and concern for everyone around him, both at work and within the community. Eggers is a church deacon, coaches local youth sports, is heavily involved in the Chamber of Commerce and High Country Homebuilder’s Association. Most recently, he was named chair of the new Affordable Housing Task Force in Watauga County.
In recognition of his award, Eggers was presented an engraved “Celestial” crystal award in addition to a cash award.
The winner of the Blue Ridge Electric Touchstone Overall Excellence Award is Kevin Clark, lead meter technician.
Fellow co-workers described Clark as “company focused 24 hours a day” and having “a customer first commitment and positive attitude that is contagious to everyone around him.” Clark is especially noted for having an innovative outlook and the knowledge to spot and correct weaknesses in systems or procedures that lead to greater safety and increased efficiency for the cooperative. His commitment doesn’t end with the cooperative, co-workers say. One of his suggestions caused a supplier to the cooperative to make a critical safety improvement to their equipment, which in turn now provides greater safety for employees of Blue Ridge and other utilities.
Co-workers say Clark, who is also involved in coaching youth sports and serves as a Sunday School teacher, is never one to seek the limelight or credit for a job well done. However, they say, his quiet leadership and hard work inspires others to greater levels of service.
Clark was presented with an engraved “Celestial” crystal award as well as a cash award.
Winner of the Blue Ridge Spirit Award
Peggy Helton, administrative assistant for the Distribution Services Group of Blue Ridge Electric, is the recipient of the Blue Ridge Spirit Award.
The Spirit Award is given to an employee of either the cooperative or its subsidiary who best demonstrates the heart and soul of the Blue Ridge companies and the mission of service they were founded upon. Exemplifying that “service to people is the greatest work in life” is a key to this award winner. The recipient must also demonstrate an outstanding contribution to meeting company goals and objectives, lend a helping hand to other employees, and be a leader in building team spirit and morale among co-workers.
Co-workers who nominated Helton said she has a reputation for a “can do/will do attitude”. She is known for her high standards, efficiency and high-achieving performance as well as effective team work. Yet her nominators say what makes Helton special is not only her focus on excellent performance but also her ability to make the work environment fun and enjoyable.
She is described as enthusiastically accepting new ideas, making positive suggestions and contributions to projects, and her willingness to take on extra work. Her work encompasses both the Electric and Energies side of the business, and nominators she has a ready smile.
Not only is Helton dedicated to her work, she also is dedicated to her community, serving in capacities for efforts such as Bridge-to-Bridge, Special Olympics, Relay for Life, and any fundraising effort in which Blue Ridge is involved.
In honor of her recognition, Helton received a hand formed Steuben “Star Stream” crystal award on an engraved black marble base. She also received a cash award.
“The Blue Ridge awards are part of our effort to recognize the valuable contributions our employees make every day to the operations of our companies and to the member-owners and customers of Blue Ridge Electric and Blue Ridge Energies,” said Johnson. “It is our intent to honor employees by setting aside a special time each year to recognize those who are truly outstanding in the eyes of their peers for demonstrating the commitment to service that our companies were founded upon,” Johnson added.
Blue Ridge Electric is a not-for-profit electric cooperative serving over 64,000 members in Caldwell, Watauga, Ashe, Alleghany, Wilkes and Alexander counties. Its subsidiary, Blue Ridge Energies, provides propane, heating fuels, wholesale gasoline, and hearth products from offices in Lenoir, Boone, West Jefferson, Sparta, and Hickory.
