Awards
PSAI Distinguished Service Recognition - Sani Award - 2010 Award Winners
The intent of the Sani Award is to create a tool whereby PSAI Member companies have an avenue to recognize extraordinary employee contributions to the professionalism and success of the member company, and the Association, outside of the Andy Gump and Service Tech awards. Each year, the current Distinguished Service Recognition recipients will be recognized at the Nuts & Bolts Workshop Friday night reception. They will be awarded a certificate, a lapel pin, and a ribbon will be added to their name badge when they attend the convention.
Linda Belk
PORTA-JON of the Piedmont is please to nominate Linda Belk for the 2010 Sani Award. Linda has been with our company for over 14 years in Customer Service. During that time she has progress to be the lead person in Customer Service. She has an excellent rapport with the customers and treats everyone with the upmost respect. Linda has the ability to work with even the most difficult situations and find a solution that is a win, win for everyone. In our industry service is King. While we often think of service in the field by our service technicians we need that same level of service to the customer on the phone when the customer calls to order a unit or has a situation that needs to be addressed. Linda always delivers the best of service to our customers when they call no matter what they need. In addition to her working with the customers Linda developed a manual that our Customer Service staff uses to explain the products and services we provide. We use this manual not only to train new customer service and sales staff on our products and services but as part of our refresher training as well. Linda has an excellent attendance record and works well with everyone in the office as well as our service technicians. Linda brings credit to our company and our industry and exemplifies the ideals of the Sani Award.
Bob Biermeier
Bob Biermeier is a legend in the portable sanitation industry. In 1965 Bob responded to an article in the paper looking for a carpenter to build small wooden buildings for the construction industry. The article directed interested parties to Al Hilde at Satellite Industries. Bob showed up and got the job…building wooden portable restrooms, this was just the start of a 37 year career in the industry. Bob proudly remembers building Satellites’ 200th portable restroom.
He developed into the ‘go to’ guy when things had to be fixed, cover for a driver to perform route service, pick-up & delivery, or create a route plan on the fly. Satellite was in the service business at that time and Bob said the rates were $19.50 per month for service each week. He also remembers his base hourly rate of pay was just under $2.00 per hour and diesel fuel was 21 cents per gallon.
He later held the position of Satellite’s Minneapolis Branch Supervisor and Trainer in the late 1970’s for the 12 branches and continued in the role after BFI acquired Satellite’s service division in 1988.
In October of 1993 Biffs, Inc. acquired BFI’s Minnesota and Wisconsin operations. Bob jumped into his new role as Operations Manager for Biffs and was a key manager for 10 years. He continued to be the go to guy for just about anything that happened from counseling a troubled employee to fixing a vacuum pump.
Bob’s motto “get-r-done!”. He sure did, time and time again while motivating others to do the same!
We are thankful for his guidance and un-swerving dedication to his job and to the industry he served so well. We are excited to recognize him with the PSAI Sani Award for Service Distinction.
George "Jorge" Briscoe
Jorge joined United Site Services through an acquisition and has been with the Company since 2004. During his time with the Companies, Jorge has worked in a number of different capacities and roles, including Service, P&D and Special Events. Jorge’s dedication and passion to his work have contributed to growing the business and making a positive difference with his co-workers and customers.
Jorge began making a difference with people when he joined the military and proudly served his Country for six (6) years. Jorge enlisted in the United States Air Force (USAF) and was attached to a Special Tactical Unit (Security Police Detail) guarding military bases. He left the USAF with a rank of Captain. After leaving the military, Jorge trained for and entered local law enforcement. He was a field officer in L.A. County for approximately twelve (12) years.
Jorge is extremely dependable and reliable. Because of this, he has become our primary “emergency contact” and “Go To” employee. As he says, “No job is too difficult or too large.” Also, Jorge’s efficiency has allowed the company to utilize him is specialized activities. For example, he played an instrumental role in opening a new yard/office in San Luis Obispo. He handled Service, P&D and Sales for approximately 4 ½ months while we grew the operation.
Additionally, Jorge has contributed greatly to our “route based” sales business. He communicates with every customer to review the service levels he provides and works with them to identify additional resources that may be needed.
Jorge is always “watching out” for his fellow co-workers and for the Company as evidenced by some of the training assignments the Company has delegated to him (training new employees) or cost saving suggestions he has made. Jorge is a positive role model in the organization and someone that continues to make a difference!
Squeaky Deering
Squeaky Deering has been a Service Technician for over 12 years. In that time, he has established himself as someone who is “cutting edge”. With the multiple product lines and types of service units our Company makes available to customers, Squeaky has taken the initiative to get trained on even those types of units he doesn’t regularly service. He points out, “I like to be prepared, just in case a customer one day has a need and the unit is on my route.”
Squeaky’s skills do not end with his field work. He also always projects a cheerful and positive attitude with our customers. He’s worked with customers to reduce service issues and other difficult situations with remarkable patience and admirable tact. Squeaky is also always thinking ahead and makes suggestions so that customers have what they need (paper supplies, hand sinks, containers, etc.)
Squeaky is dependable, efficient and reliable. His willingness to take on difficult work assignments and complete them in little time and with success has been impressive. These skill sets have allowed us to make him part of a specialized team of drivers that s assist during major disasters.
Squeaky’s positive attitude has inspired others to join him in exceeding service expectations. As he likes to point out to his co-workers, “there’s clean, and then there’s squeaky clean…”
Albert Elliott
PORTA-JON of the Piedmont is please to nominate Albert Elliott for the 2010 Sani Award. Albert worked for PORTA-JON for over 10 years as a service technician before he passed away in 2007 from a sudden illness. Albert held a variety of positions with our company he started cleaning restrooms advanced to service technician and then to the lead driver position. Albert always performed his job with the upmost skill and was always willing to assist other in learning and helping them to improve. He was PSAI certified. In addition to working with other drivers he communicated well with people on his route and always received complements from his customers. Albert had an excellent attendance record and was always willing to go the extra mile to insure the job was done. PORTA-JON will always miss having Albert with us. He was a credit to our company and the industry and we are pleased that we can honor his memory through the Sani Award because he certainly represented what this award recognizes.
Verlon E. Grady
Verlon began in the portable restroom industry in 1988 as a Service Technician. His background with ServiceMaster proved to be a tremendous asset in terms of runnig a route and successfully interacting with customers.
Verlon joined PIT STOP in November 2002 as a back-up Service Technician an back-up Pick-up and Delivery Driver He mastered every route that he ran and he quickly earned the reputation of being a hard worker and dedicated employee. Verlon earned the position of Special Events Supervisor and under his leadership; Special Events at PIT STOP have continued to grow. He has had many years of perfect attendance and will stay out in he field until the job is completed. Customers admire and respect his performance and his desire to always exceed the customer's expectations. He is easy going and brings a sense of control when certain Special Events seem to be out of control.
It is indeed an honor to nominate an exceptional person, an exceptional employee, and an exceptional example of a true professional---Verlon Grady---for the inaugural 2010 Sani Award!
Ralph Guffey
PORTA-JON of the Piedmont is pleased to nominate Ralph Guffey for the 2010 Sani award. Ralph worked for PORTA-JON for 28 years prior to his death in 2007. Ralph began working in the wash bay cleaning and repairing restrooms and eventually became a service technician. Working as a service technician Ralph always received the highest complements from his customers. Many times when superintendents would complete a job they would want to know if Ralph would be servicing the restrooms on their next job because they knew he would do an excellent job. Ralph’s record of attendance and reliability was remarkable. During one period Ralph had 20 consecutive years of perfect attendance. Ralph always had a cheerful hello and smile for everyone. He loved people and was a credit to this company and this industry. PORTA-JON is pleased we can honor his memory with the Sani Award. Ralph touched all of our lives and is missed everyday.
Beverly Lewis
Black Tie Sanitation Services is proud to nominate Beverly Lewis for 2010 Sani-Award. Beverly began working with me in the role of Account Manager in 1997 and did an outstanding job. As the business grew, Beverly utilized her education in Sales and Marketing and developed her skills and the skills of those around her to build a sales and marketing team of 6 full time people. Additionally, Beverly developed and maintained a progressive sales and marketing program that was a driving force in our market. Beverly’s appreciation and respect for the industry, attention to detail, dedication, and passion for excellence has made her a top performer for her entire career. When I made the decision to start Black Tie Sanitation Services, Beverly was my first call. Anyone who leaves a career selling diamonds to sell portable sanitation services clearly has her priorities straight!
Steve McDonald
Perhaps no individual in the relatively brief history of the portable sanitation industry is as well known or has had the varied impact of Steve McDonald. As a sales representative for four companies (PolyPortables, Olympia Fiberglass, Satellite Industries, and Usanco), McDonald was known for the integrity and class with which he conducted his business. As editor and publisher of the Sanitation Sentinel, and then the Sanitation Journal, he and his family created publications which honorably and thoroughly served the evolving needs of the industry. Many remember McDonald’s strong work ethic, and the way he spent much of his editorial space encouraging others to perform at a high ethical level. This example earned him the M.Z. “Andy” Gump Distinguished Service Award in 2008. The award was presented to McDonald by his family on the day of his death.
Rodney Mullett
Rodney was born in Ipswich, Suffolk England and immigrated with his family to the USA in the late 1950's. The family settled in Michigan and Rodney attended school in the city of Holland. As an accomplished drummer Rodney embarked on a career as a professional musican in the 1960's and as a member of the "Sheffields" had several hit songs that landed on the billboard charts.
By the 1970's Rodney gave up life on the road as a drummer to support his young family. He took an entry level job at a local manufacturing company and soon worked his way up to Manager of the company's plastics vacuum forming division.
With his expertise in plastics Rodney launched his own consulting company in the 1980's working with a wide variety of manufacturing concerns in the midwest. In 1986 he was contacted by Ed Cooper,George Harding and George Hiskes who needed some technical assistance for their newly founded plastic restroom manufacturing company PolyJohn Enterprises Inc.
After working with Rodney for a few weeks the ownership group quickly realized that they wanted Rodney as part of their team and pursuaded him join PolyJohn permanently as their new Director of Engineering.
For the next 23+ years Rodney was intregal part of the growth and success of PolyJohn and the Portable Restroom Industry as a whole. He has designed numerous products that are now used by restroom operators worldwide and holds patents on many of the innovative products related to our industry.
Rodney will officially retire from PolyJohn in March of 2010 but plans to keep attending industry trade shows and events to keep in contact with his many industry friends.
Bill, In my humble opinion Rodney certainly deserves the PSAI's recognition for his numerous contributions to our industry and should certainly be included in the inaugeral group of Sani Award recipients.
June Pannell
June Pannell began her association with PolyPortables within a few weeks of the company’s move to Dahlonega, GA from Florida when her husband, who worked for the local telephone company came to the new office to install the service. He liked Ed and Mitzi Crafton and thought it would be a good place for her to work. Thus began an association and a friendship that would last for the rest of their lifetimes. June retired from PolyPortables in 2003 after 28 years of service. And what service it was. As Poly grew from a very small company to a much larger one, June’s tasks included everything from packing UPS shipments to manually typing up invoices and maintaining all accounts payable and receivable all from a single room office. In one particularly memorable and telling exchange, Kathy Crafton, Ed and Mitzi’s daughter recalls her father silently dialing the phone and, without preamble, looking over at June and asking “What’s his name?” “And yes”, Kathy says, “she knew without any discussion exactly who he was calling, even when her Dad didn’t. That’s just how it was. We wouldn’t be the company we are today without the loyalty, skill and love of June Pannell.”
Michael Peltier
I first me Mike in 1988 when we were both employed at Waste management/Port-O-Let of Minnesota. mike was hired on as a Route Driver and quickly became known as a hardworking dedicated and reliable man. When I started up On Site Sanitation Inc. he was the first person I called to come and work with me, that was 20 years ago this year. I have come to rely on Mike to handle many different aspects of the day to day services, which include high security military services, along with time sensitive events, deliveries, installations & set-ups and now scheduling and dispatching can be added to Mike's list of duties. Mike has been a volunteer fire fighter for the city of Stillwater for over two decades, and he enjoys music, and is known to be quite an accomplished bowler as well.
Clarence Planthaber
Clarence Planthaber is the definition of dependability and attendance. Clarence is starting his 21st year at Big John Portable Toilet Rentals and within the past 20 years of employment Clarence has missed two days of work.
The first absence was due to Clarence breaking his leg and was admitted into the hospital. However the next day, with his leg in a cast, Clarence serviced the toilets on his route with the help of his wife who drove and operated the truck.
The second absence was also medically related when Clarence was taken to the hospital on a Friday morning and diagnosed with Diabetes. After his sugar level was under control Clarence again returned to work on Monday to service his route.
There are numerous stories about Clarence and his extraordinary initiative including wading waste deep into water to retrieve a portable toilet swept away by flooding. Clarence is also devoted to his customers and provides quality service which is recognized by the numerous customer calls requesting Clarence as their service provider.
Clarence is one of the senior service technicians at Big John Prtable Toilet Rentals and has grown to be a wealth of knowledge to new hires. Clarence is always willing to help the new service technician and provide training when possible. For these reasons and more, I nominate Clarence Planthaber for the PSAI Distiguished Service Recognition Award.
Douglas E. Postell
PORTA-JON of the Piedmont is pleased to nominate Doug Postell for the 2010 Sani Award. Doug started with our company in 1989 as a Service and Delivery Technician. Doug was quick to demonstrate his ability to go above and beyond the normal expectations of the position. He did an excellent job completing his route and making sure deliveries were done. We always received favorable comments about his work from his customers. When we realized his ability, he was first promoted to the dispatcher position and later to Operations Manager. A position he has held for over 12 years. Doug is extremely well versed in every phase of portable restroom operations and has the consistently demonstrated the ability to teach other theses skills too so they too can develop into well qualified technicians. He is PSAI Certified and has worked with all of his technicians to insure they too are certified. Doug is dependable and his attendance record has been exemplary. No task goes undone when Doug is in charge and we are blessed to have him as our Operations Manager. Doug’s skills and initiative to excel speak volumes and are what this award is intended to honor.
Dorothy Lee Potter
Dorothy came to Northwest Cascade in 1982 with the purchase of Redford Honey Buckets. Over the next 28 years, not only has she worked with many managers and dispatchers, but she has also gone from completing all billing by hand to an almost completely digital world. Her geographical knowledge of all the counties we serve has increased with the expansion of markets by the company.
She works effectively with minimum supervision and has the judgment and wisdom to ask her supervisor’s advice on decisions beyond her authority. She assists in daily operations to get it all done as a team in an efficient and timely manner.
Her strength in identifying loop-holes in the system, keeping the team focus on the job at hand, detecting errors and correcting them, assuring proper revenue. She has also suggested improvements in computer programs and numerous systems. She relates to others at all levels with mutual respect and sensitivity to their needs.
Outside work Dorothy enjoys family time, volunteer work in her church and lots of joy tending to her flower gardens and landscaping.
Matt Richardson
Matt Richardson started at NW Cascade in September of 1988. He worked his way up from “The Fuel Island”, which is fueling and stocking trucks. Over the years he has been a route driver and then a pickup and delivery driver to become a jack of all trades in the sanitation industry.
Matt has a great attitude and always has a smile on his face. He does what is needed of him at anytime and takes excellent care of our customers requiring minimal supervision. He added to his list of abilities a class A CDL license. He can safely operate anything we own and get the job done. Beside of work, Matt enjoys time with his family and friends and his many pets, including his new rabbit.
Ann Roller
In 1992, Anne Roller left her job at the bank in Merrill Oregon, and went to work across the street for Dave Jensen at Jefferson State Pumping. As a detail person Anne seemed a likely candidate for Dave’s office position. It soon became obvious that she was exactly the right person for the job! For the next 19 years, “Annie” dealt with the banking and financial aspects of the company and became the go-to person for any major project. She continued to develop skills and knowledge essential to her job, and played an important part in all the major changes the company has gone through.
Annie was a tremendous asset. She did excellent work, and had the uncanny ability to locate information just before it was needed. She was very loyal, a hard worker, and always accurate. She kept track of the important details of all aspects of the company. Annie often worked beyond her scheduled time, and enjoyed being an important part of the business. The other employees and customers alike knew that they could rely on Annie. With her keen sense of humor and love of life, she helped build a strong sense of family among our staff.
When the company was transformed into Modoc Services, Annie was instrumental in making the transition a smooth one. Once again, her mastery of detail was amazing. As part of a smaller staff, her dependability was even more valuable. Annie came to work in the morning with a sunny smile and made everyone’s work more fun. When emergency jobs took staff out of the area, she adjusted schedules as necessary, preventing any problems. Her love of people was apparent, and everyone was happy to cooperate with her.
We lost Annie on October 8, 2009. Her passing came quickly and unexpectedly. We greatly miss her professional presence, but even more we miss her personally. Working with her was a privilege. She deserves recognition for her extraordinary contributions to the professionalism and success of our company.
William "Bill" Thompson
Bill Thompson joined the PolyPortables family in 1995, at a crucial point in the company’s development. PolyPortables had produced a single line of standard portable restrooms since its inception, and was in need of expanding its product offering. In addition, the burgeoning company was pushing its systemic boundaries, and needed to modernize its processes and capabilities to keep pace with yearly leaps in sales volume. It had the leadership in its newly-appointed 2nd-generation president, but the company needed a strong hand to expand and guide its production facility. Taking cues from President Kathy Crafton, Thompson moved the business into many of the modern manufacturing processes it employs today. Thompson oversaw the design of the company’s extremely popular Integra restroom, as well as the design and installation of the intricate equipment used in its production. He also oversaw the expansion of the company’s handicap-accessible product lines, the creation of various upgrade packages, and was first to expand the company’s color options beyond its original three choices. In the last two years of his employment, prior to his retirement in 2007, Thompson accepted the call to serve as the company’s International Sales Representative.
Mary Thornton
If PolyPortables was a living being, Mary Thornton would be its heart, and possibly its brain. The Pulaski, Pa., native has worked at the company longer than all but one current employee, and a tremendous wealth of institutional memory resides with her. Ask her about a long-out-of-stock part, and she’ll tell you when and how it was used, as well as when it was rendered obsolete. In fact, she can tell you about almost any aspect of the evolution of the PolyPortables line of products. She’s like a mother to “her sales guys,” as she fondly calls them, and does an admirable job of playing advocate for the customer when an order doesn’t look quite right to her. Many an order has been saved from error by Thornton’s eagle eye and adept questioning. If a Poly sales rep has to call a customer back with the answer to an inquiry, there’s a good chance they’ve run the problem past Thornton for resolution or confirmation.
James E. Threatt
PORTA-JON of the Piedmont is please to nominate James Threatt for the 2010 Sani Award. James has worked in the portable sanitation industry for over 18 years as a service technician. He came to work with our company as part of an acquisition in 2000. From the start we knew that James was an exemplary service technician. He does an excellent job servicing portable restrooms always completing his route on a daily basis. His customers ask for him when they complete a job and move to another. We have received numerous calls and letters praising James’ work over the years. In addition to his service skills James does well talking to the customers and selling additional units and service when needed. He is always looking for the most efficient way to complete his route to insure maximum production. James has an excellent attendance and safety record and is PSAI Certified. Service technicians represent this industry everyday by the way in which they perform their job. James is a credit to our company and this industry and exemplifies what the Sani Award is intended to recognize.
Susan Threlkeld
PORTA-JON of the Piedmont is please to nominate Susan Threlkeld for the 2010 Sani Award. Susan has been with our company for over 14 years. Susan is our billing specialist for portable restrooms. She started with the company part time in the billing department and we quickly recognized her ability and moved her into a full time position. Billing portable restrooms has always been her specialty however, she also assists with customer service when needed. Susan is very good with customers. She has the ability to defuse any situation with difficult callers when they question a billing statement. Susan works well with the remainder of the staff, is cheerful and has an excellent attendance record. Billing is a key position in any organization. In our industry we stress the importance of quality service by our service technicians and often overlook the fact that our customers need the same level of exemplary service in having a properly completed invoice. Susan delivers that service on a daily basis and is truly an outstanding nominee for the Sani Award.
Sharon Wilkes
She’s professional, fun, witty, trustworthy, reliable, gifted and dedicated to the team and its purpose. We at Biffs, Inc. are proud to have Sharon as a strong member of our Management Team.
Sharon has faithfully served the portable restroom industry as an employee for 20 years. Her extraordinary contributions each year have made her a very valuable contributor and resource to our whole industry. Millicent and William Carroll from the PSAI summarized their 10 year initial experience of working with Sharon as follows:
“Sharon began her employment with the PSAI on January 21, 1991 and her last day of employment was December 29, 2000. She worked for almost 10-yrs. beginning as an Administrative Assistant and leaving the PSAI as Finance/Accounting Administrator. Throughout that time she handled a large variety of special projects from helping William create a specific PSAI Budget/Accounting financial spreadsheet to helping layout the newly created Certification Manual page format. In her role as "guardian of the financial paperwork", she had so much confidence, she was able to hand all paperwork requested and file after file to auditors in not one but two IRS audits. One auditor stated she'd never come across such attention to detail.”
“Her attention to detail didn't end with numbers. Sharon hasn't been a PSAI employee since December 2000 but there hasn't been a Nuts & Bolts Workshop or Convention and Trade Show, where someone will still ask about Sharon. She will always be a member of the PSAI family.”
Sharon came to work at Biffs on our Finance Team in the year 2000. We already knew her well and we have been very fortunate ever since to have her as a loyal, reliable, and talented employee.
Each year since Sharon’s start date she has been one of only a few employees that have never missed a day of work. Sharon is in charge of keeping track of all employee information, payroll, bank reconciliation, insurance and is known for her accuracy.
Sharon has also developed extremely tight relationships with many Biffs’ employees. It is because of Sharon’s excellent service, commitment and work ethic, to the portable sanitation we are excited to recognize her with the PSAI Sani Award for Service Distinction.