Pinnacol receives "Dr. Ben Galloway Community Partner of the Year Award

Pinnacol was honored to be recognized by the Bonfils Blood Center Foundation as its "Community Partner of the Year" at the Foundation's Annual Lifesavers Breakfast on April 19th. The award is named for Dr. Ben Galloway, who played a key role in the creation of the Foundation in 1995 and continues to serve as a Foundation board member today.

"To be honored in connection to the commitment that Dr. Ben Gallaway has made to our community is humbling. We are simply following the example he has set for all of us," shared Edie Sonn, Pinnacol's vice president of communications and public affairs.

(Pictured at left, left to right: Susan Witkin, breakfast emcee; Bryan Krueger, Bonfils Blood Center president and CEO; and Edie Sonn, Matt Mckenzie and Chris Sautter (all from Pinnacol).

This recognition is directly tied to Pinnacol's multifaceted support of Bonfils Blood Center. "Pinnacol's commitment to Bonfils is longstanding and has strengthened in recent years," said Julie Scott, Bonfils Blood Center Foundation's executive director. "Our commitment is to provide a safe and plentiful blood supply for Coloradans, and Pinnacol's commitment to our mission is greatly appreciated."

At the awards breakfast, Pinnacol's support in four areas was highlighted:

• Pinnacol has hosted onsite, quarterly blood drives for over 15 years. Through Pinnacol in Action (PiA), our employees are encouraged to utilize paid-volunteer-time to make regular blood donations. 
• Through Pinnacol's community investment program, the company has granted Bonfils $30,000 over three years to support its "Build-A-Fleet" program. Statewide, more than half of Bonfils' blood donations are collected through mobile blood drives, yet its fleet of collection vehicles averages over twenty years old. The effort will help Bonfils both retain current blood donors and work toward its goal of a 20 percent increase in new blood donors by 2018.  
•  Recent changes to Pinnacol's employee giving campaign model positively impacted Bonfils Blood Center. Since Partnership for Colorado was added to Pinnacol's giving options in 2015, employees are able to designate payroll contribution gifts to Bonfils throughout 2016. Those gifts are matched by Pinnacol. 
• Terry Leve, Pinnacol's chief legal and corporate resources officer, serves as a director on Bonfils' Operating Board of Directors and provides volunteer leadership to support the growth and development of Bonfils' mission.