Longmont Area Economic Council Announces Annual Community Appreciation Award Winners; Local business that support the Longmont community honored

The Longmont Area Economic Council (LAEC) presented its annual Community Appreciation Awards on Wednesday, September 15th. Three local businesses were honored: Intrado, STMicroelectronics and Xilinx. Intrado President George Heinrichs, STMicroelectronics Vice President Roberto Fantechi and Ken Perry of Xilinx accepted the awards on behalf of their companies. Susan Pratt was awarded the Tom Brock Award for her contributions to the economic success of the Longmont community.

September 28, 2004 -- The Longmont Area Economic Council (LAEC) presented its annual Community Appreciation Awards on Wednesday, September 15th. Three local businesses were honored: Intrado, STMicroelectronics and Xilinx. Intrado President George Heinrichs, STMicroelectronics Vice President Roberto Fantechi and Ken Perry of Xilinx accepted the awards on behalf of their companies. Susan Pratt was awarded the Tom Brock Award for her contributions to the economic success of the Longmont community.

LAEC's Community Appreciation Luncheon recognizes Longmont-area employers that help build a strong community through their efforts to support their employees, the environment and community-based organizations. This recognition is part of a comprehensive effort by the Longmont Area Economic Council to support existing industry, which includes 235 companies employing more than 13,000 people in the region.

Area businesses supporting this year's event included Platinum-level sponsors Longmont Power & Communications and Amgen, and Gold-level sponsors Longmont United Hospital, Wells Fargo Bank and Star Precision.

About the Award Winners
Intrado (www.intrado.com), a pioneer in emergency communications, was recognized for its employee support programs. The company began a program years ago to reward exceptional employees with cash bonuses. While appreciated, management realized that the money was frequently used for routine purchases, and they wanted to fund employees dreams. An employee is selected each month, and one is selected as employee of the year, all by fellow employees.

Past awards have included a trip to Vancouver to see a Colorado Avalanche hockey game from the NHL Commissioners seats; a family vacation to Seattle to visit the Experience Music Project; a trip to the 2002 World Cup soccer finals in Asia; a trip to Gettysburg for a Civil War re-enactment; a cycling trip to France to see the Tour de France; a creative writing workshop in Napa Valley; a NASCAR adventure; and a trip to New York City for cooking school.

Another key employee program at Intrado is the ongoing support for those serving in the National Guard and Reserves. When called to active duty, employees receive their net full salary and maintain their company health benefits. This program has received the George W. Bush Award for Support of Military Participation and the National Committee for Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (NESGR) recognized Intrado as a patriotic employer for contributing to national security and protecting liberty and freedom.

Intrado encourages community involvement and volunteerism, resulting in support for local food drives and assistance with armed forces care packages. To date, more than 1200 pounds of special request items, including videos, books, lip balm, and more has been sent to soldiers serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. Intrado also has a longstanding relationship with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, supporting for the Amber Alert Program, the Ambassador program and the NCMEC KidCare ID Program. Intrado also acts as the rollover emergency call center for 1-800-THE LOST, the NCMEC Hotline.

STMicroelectronics (www.st.com), a global, independent semiconductor company, was honored for its commitment to environmental responsibility. The company has received numerous awards for its work around the world to lessen the impact of its operations on the environment. The STMicroelectronics Longmont office employs about 100 people who do their part by recycling 100% of their waste and purchasing nearly all of their power from wind energy sources, even though it is significantly more expensive. They also support community organizations such as the food drive for the womens coalition, clothing and blanket drives and the Toys for Tots campaign.

Xilinx (www.xilinx.com), which designs and manufactures programmable logic devices, was recognized for its corporate culture. The company considers innovation to be its number one product, and creativity is a core value. Xilinx sees its people as its greatest asset, and it was able to keep its people and improve its competitive position during the recent economic downturn. The organization's dedication to its people is shown in its emphasis on work/life balance, and the company has been recognized as a Top 10 Companies to Work For by Fortune Magazine each of the last four years.

Xilinx sees its legacy in its people and the community, as well as the company. Its vision is to be recognized for setting the standard for the new generation of high technology companies across the region. Company goals include having a measurable, positive impact throughout the community that makes employees and partners proud of their association with Xilinx.

Xilinx wants to be instrumental in helping to attract healthy businesses to the area and being a role model for community participation. The company works to support key partners and community leaders when they are faced with making key decisions and choosing strategies. They hope to measurably transform lives in positive ways, helping to develop tomorrow's leaders and furthering the cause of learning.

Xilinx supports a number of organizations throughout Longmont, including the Longmont Area Economic Council, the Support Our Students program for St. Vrain Valley Schools, Habitat for Humanity, the Longmont YMCA and many others.

The Tom Brock Award
In the early 1960s, a number of business leaders got together to spur Longmonts economic development through the establishment of an industrial park. What began as a grassroots effort to raise money for the park became a successful development that paid back investors with money left over to support the community. One of the founders of the industrial park board was Tom Brock, a business leader who helped build the Longmont-area economy and better the community. The award that bears his name was established in 1999 and recognizes these leadership qualities in a Longmont-area business person. The recipient of this award is chosen by a committee representing the former Longmont industrial park board. This years Tom Brock award winner is Susan Pratt.

For more than a quarter century, Susan Pratt has been integrally involved in the development and growth of business and industry in the Longmont/Boulder area. The vision she and her late husband Ken shared helped change Longmont from a bedroom community to a dynamic industrial base, bringing with that change thousands of well-paying, highly skilled jobs. Longmont has enjoyed a continuous increase in prosperity as a result of these efforts.

Susan has also contributed to the benefit of the community at large. She has chaired charitable fundraising campaigns and has personally contributed significantly to the development of the Hope Cancer Care Center at Longmont United Hospital. She has a longstanding commitment to higher education and has provided major support to the University of Colorado and the University of Denver. Susan has also helped create international awareness of Longmont and its high-tech base through her involvement with Colorados Japan initiatives, including help with the organization and growth of the Japan America Society, and as host to the Emperor and Empress of Japan. Susan has also been a longtime supporter of the Longmont Area Economic Council.

She has extended these efforts with enthusiasm and her commitment to improve all she can. This philosophy is reflected in her companys purpose statement: "To create a better future for all." Susan has always maintained a tight hold on her family and her values, and today she extends that same enthusiasm in her role as grandmother to two growing boys. Susan is known as a smart, hard working, fair business person who is also compassionate and giving.

About the Longmont Area Economic Council
The Longmont Area Economic Council exists for the sole purpose of keeping the Longmont area economy strong. This is accomplished specifically by "actively supporting the creation and preservation of quality primary jobs." Primary employers are those who sell the majority of their goods and services outside the region. LAEC is a public/private partnership, governed by a Board of Directors made up of representatives from primary employers, the City of Longmont, and the business community at large. For more information, call (303) 651-0128, email e-mail protected from spam bots, or visit www.longmont.org.

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