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SAFECO's Rudy Awards
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December 22, 1998
Business Wire
(Copyright (c) 1998, Business Wire)
SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 22, 1998--SAFECO recently presented its annual Rudy Awards, along with a total of $90,000 in grants, to three "beacons of light" within the Puget Sound and Indianapolis communities.
The 1998 awards were given to Dave Surface, executive director of the Snohomish County Campfire Boys and Girls; James May, director of the Fathers Network (based in Bellevue); and Jerry Hurst, director of the Care Center domestic violence shelter in Indianapolis.
As part of the Rudy Award, SAFECO has donated $30,000 to each non-profit organization on behalf of these leaders to thank them for their outstanding
service.
The Rudy Award, created by SAFECO in 1994, is named for Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer and honors individual leaders who have made extraordinary contributions to local non-profits and their communities.
"Rudy recipients are `beacons of light' in their community, and have demonstrated their ability to cut through the fog and get the job done," said Gordon Hamilton, vice president of SAFECO Public Relations. "Communities succeed because people are willing to assume the risks involved in leadership. We're fortunate to have an abundance of committed people who are willing to step forward, and SAFECO is proud to honor them."
Surface was recognized for his dedication to helping children. He not only leads the Campfire organization in Snohomish County, but also serves as a collaborative leader among all of the youth programs in the Snohomish area. Surface has worked tirelessly to keep the Campfire programs current, modernizing them to keep kids' interest as times change. He understands that youth programs like the Campfire organization can provide purpose and a safe refuge for at-risk children and teenagers.
May earned a Rudy because of his invaluable assistance to fathers and families of children with special needs through the Fathers Network, a program provided through the Kindering Center of Bellevue. The Fathers Network, which May founded at the state and national levels, is the only countrywide program fully committed to helping dads help their children through a variety of hardships such as chronic illness and developmental disabilities. May has worked to make sure the program is available to all men, focusing on reaching rural and inner-city fathers.
Rudy Award recipients are nominated by SAFECO employees, and the awards and grants are given as surprises to the winners. SAFECO has given $540,000 to Puget Sound nonprofit organizations through the Rudy Award since its inception five years ago.
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