Nominee: David Fuller, CEO
I would like to nominate the SunTrust Chief Executive Officer here in Central Florida, Mr. David Fuller. He completed his first Olympic distance triathlon last year and is currently training and signed up for several races this year. He is now an avid swimmer, biker, and most importantly runner. ?
His biggest accomplishments however are his strength and leadership within the organization and his devotion to community.
Our CEO has worked closely with Team in Training to participate in his first Olympic distance Triathlon in 2012. So far this year he has participated in the “Wild Man Triathlon”. He is signed up for “The Inaugural Rocket Man” at the Kennedy Space Center as well as the IRONMAN Augusta 70.3. He is seen regularly at the YMCA and running in Winter Park. He ran the IOA last year and plans to run it this year. He produced one of the better CEO run times and is only improving to win this year. SunTrust Bank has over 26,000 full time employees, 2500 of them in the Central Florida community alone. More importantly SunTrust sponsors a “healthmiles” program through Virgin where each employee can receive reimbursement into an HSA or directly for staying fit by wearing a pedometer. Our CEO wears his Virgin Health Miles pedometer wherever he goes and is always emphasizing the benefits of exercise and staying fit. I believe that talk alone is not enough and that one must embrace the very words that one prescribes. This CEO we have in Central Florida has embraced the leadership role and all the things that embody that, even if it means running with the rest of us……………..
A leader that leads by example.
Nominee: Kevin Casey
I am nominating our Partner on the Ernst & Young Corporate 5K Team, Kevin Casey, for the Tom Scalise Leadership Award.
Kevin supported Ernst & Young's participation for many years and first joined the team in 2012. After the event, Kevin began a concerted effort in improving his personal fitness and helping his co-workers. He began running with a group of fellow accountants early in 2012 and after competing in several 5Ks he finished the 2013 Disney Half-Marathon and the 2013 Disney Princess Half-Marathon. Kevin also signed up for several triathlons in 2013 and began his swim, bike, and run training. After the Ernst & Young team reached 30 members a few weeks ago, Kevin approved raising the team limit to 40 people. We reached 38 people this week, a great achievement for an office with a total of 85 people.
Thank you for your consideration.
Nominee: Harris Rosen, COO
I would like to nominate our President and COO Harris Rosen for the Tom Scalise Leadership Award. Mr. Rosen is the epitome of wellness and is committed to leading all of us associates by example. Thanks to his leadership, our company has a comprehensive wellness and prevention program that includes a state of the art primary care medical facility located at one of the hotels for our associates and dependents.
The Rosen Hotels & Resorts Medical Center, A Place for Healing and Wellness includes preventative care such as annual physicals, comprehensive screening lab tests, well-baby care, pregnancy case management, weight management, dietician services, flu shots and vaccines, mental health and dental benefits, as well as exercise programs, classes and fitness groups. The one-year old medical center took the place of the previous 4,000-square-foot facility. With an additional 8,000 square feet, the newer facility is able to provide space for more treatment rooms, more rooms for mammograms and other specialty screenings, examination rooms for specialists, a physical therapy/rehabilitation center and an adjoining fitness unit. The company also employs a wellness coordinator to oversee an ever-growing roster of free health and fitness programs offered to all employees. Exercise classes such as Zumba, Tai Chi, Yoga, Cycling, and Boot Camp, are just some of the classes offered at no cost to our associates. We also participate in numerous 5Ks throughout the year and Mr. Rosen pays for everyone’s entry fee. For example, our company pays 100% of the registration fees for the Corporate 5K, including associates and any guest they bring with them.
Mr. Rosen has also put company policies in place to promote a healthy workplace. We have a drug and nicotine free workforce policy which includes pre-employment and random drug and nicotine testing. All of our company’s internal events feature healthy menus approved by our medical center. Incentive programs have been put into place to reward associates who exercise. Weight Watchers is offered to full time associates at no cost. Our company has been recognized by the OBJ as a Healthiest Employer Award Recipient and by the American Heart Association as a Start! Fit Friendly Workplace – Platinum Level for the last three years.
Thank you for considering Mr. Rosen for this award.
Nominee: Betros Wakim, CEO
Good Day Corporate 5K!
I would like to nominate my CEO for the Tom Scalise Leadership Award.
Our CEO, Betros Wakim, exemplifies excellence in Health and Wellness in the workplace, because he, as an example, stays fit and encourages all company sponsored employee meals to include a choice of lean meats, fruits and vegetables. Our company reimburses $360 a year to each employee through our Health and Wellness program for expenses on exercise equipment, dance classes, gym memberships and even massages and other sessions supporting health and wellness. Every year, our CEO pays for all employees to participate in the Corporate 5K directly. This is not included in the Health and Wellness program.
Although the company’s insurance premiums increased substantially last year, our CEO did not increase the employee portion of that premium for our open access medical plan. In fact the company pays 95% of the medical plan’s premium, resulting in employees paying as little as $23 per month! Our employees already have a zero premium for our vision, life insurance and disability plans. Our employees get 80 hours each year to use to care for illnesses or the illnesses of their loved one. Our CEO understands that healthy employees are happy employees and happy employees keep our customers happy. Happy customers keep the business healthy?.
Nominee: Todd Smith, CEO and Ted Rubin, COO
I'd like to nominate Todd Smith CEO of ActivEngage and Ted Rubin COO of ActivEngage for this award.
Both Ted and Todd implemented a program at ActivEngage that covers all healthcare costs for every full-time employee. All medical, dental and eye care costs are covered by ActivEngage as well as a complimentary membership to RDV Sportsplex in to promote living a healthy lifestyle. Employees must visit RDV at least 3 times a week in order to keep their membership. As a compliment to this program, the ActivEngage team participates in the annual Corporate 5K run/walk, a basketball league that plays twice a week at RDV and a social sports league (baseball, flag football, and soccer) that plays every Tuesday night in Winter Park. Every year, ActivEngage also puts a team together for the local Relay for Life Event where employees must continuously walk around a track for 24 hours in order to raise funds for the American Cancer Society. The benefits Ted and Todd has put in place is beneficial both to ActivEngage employees as well as the growth of the company.
Nominee: John Lux, President
I would love to nominate the President of IDEAS, John Lux, for the Tom Scalise Leadership Award. John not only encouraged us start a team for the IOA Corporate 5k this year, but he also put out the offer that anyone who signed up with the IDEAS team, the company would then cover the cost of the 5k. In addition to this, he has previously sent out emails encouraging yoga in the workplace, meditation for a healthier mind and exercise to keep energy and wellness up at work. Several employees have begun actually exercising at the office after work hours, and John is one who is always eager to join and encourages others to do so as well.
Nominee: Melanie Fernandez
I would like to nominate Melanie Fernandez of Cross, Fernandez & Riley, LLP for the award.
Melanie Fernandez is the perfect example of wellness in the workplace. As a partner and the Director of Assurance Services at Cross, Fernandez & Riley, LLP (C/F/R) she contends with a hectic schedule daily and often back to back appointments nonstop the entire work week. Yet, she not only manages to live an active and healthy lifestyle – she excels at it. In her spare time, Melanie likes to run, bike, and do yoga and pilates. She also frequently participates in triathlons and road races. In the last 3 years, Melanie has placed either 1st or 2nd in the Overall Female CEO category in the IOA Corporate 5K. Moreover, when she is not being active she is promoting wellness and working to bring wellness initiatives to C/F/R. Melanie started our firm’s fitness challenge, which kicked off a five week program to start employees on a regular fitness routine. The Challenge quickly turned into a circuit training program that takes place two evenings each week in our conference room. We even have a local bank president join us in our workouts. In addition, Melanie has also helped bring a women’s wellness initiative that focuses on women’s wellness issues, a company running group, free in-office chair massages during our firm’s busiest season and sponsorship of the IOA Corporate 5K, Give Kids The World Gingerbread Run and the Rescue Run Corporate 5K. Melanie’s efforts to bring wellness to the firm have also been instrumental in C/F/R being named a Gold Fit-Friendly Worksite by the American Heart Association for the past three years.
Nominee: Dr. Ben Rall
I would like to respectfully submit the following nomination for this wonderful award:
Maximized Living is a Chiropractic based wellness company based in Celebration, FL. The main focus of our company to promote health and wellness through eating well, exercising regularly, stress management, and regular chiropractic care. As with all companies too often what we promote to others is lost within the walls that are making it happen (the shoemaker’s children have the grungiest shoes, etc.). Dr. Ben Rall gave up his thriving practice in Sioux Falls, SD a year ago to move to Celebration to help make our main company stronger and to become a main pillar of Maximized Living. When Dr. Rall held his first staff meeting he brought with him the passion about health and exercise with the knowledge that only a doctor can have. He has taken it upon himself to create talks and powerpoints each and every Monday morning for our staff to learn and embrace the tenets of healthy living that we were promoting to our clients yet not living ourselves. The changes within our company have been tremendous – employees have lost weight, have embraced running and working out, and are living a much better life due to his passion for wellness.
Thank you for your consideration!
Nominee: Reagan Rick, CEO
We would like to nominate Reagan Rick, our president and CEO of Fifth Third Bank, Central and North Florida, for the 2013 Tom Scalise Leadership Award. We think Reagan epitomizes a healthy and active lifestyle and exemplifies leadership in promoting workplace wellness by encouraging others to engage in fitness and healthy living.
Our Florida headquarters are located just steps from the City Beautiful’s Lake Eola, More frequently than some of us prefer, Reagan hosts “walking” meetings with his direct reports. In the office, you will also find Reagan refusing to ride the elevator up to his office on the tenth floor. Reagan has been a constant encourager and supporter for our workforce to practice a life-long passion for healthy and active living, and we have launched several initiatives to promote and sustain wellness and a healthy and balanced lifestyle.
Outside of the office, Reagan has been active his entire life and has been running, scuba diving, snow skiing, and mountain and rock climbing across the world. He ran his first half marathon in 1983 and has participated in countless races spanning four decades. However, Reagan’s greatest running joy is running with his family. Reagan and his adult daughters have run four marathons together and they will all spend “family time” running the Boston Marathon this Spring (Reagan’s third Boston Marathon), returning to Orlando for the IOA Corporate 5k.
“Wellness” for the Rick family also includes embracing the outdoors and they love the Colorado Rockies on skis, climbing the fourteeners, and rock climbing outside of Boulder and Aspen. Reagan and one of his daughters spent their African adventure climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, and he also loves rock climbing in Southern Thailand.
Reagan has been a constant proponent of sustainable wellness by leading a lifestyle which embraces active and healthy living. He’s an advocate for the American Heart Association and will be the chair of the Greater Orlando Heart Ball in 2014.
Reagan leads by example, as displayed by his personal, professional and community commitment to health and wellness. Reagan Rick would be a perfect candidate for the Tom Scalise Leadership Award.
Nominee: Lisa
Lisa literally goes ABOVE AND BEYOND with our wellness program. Lisa has Florida Hospital coming and speaking to us about working out, eating healthy, stress in the workplace, and more. She has had Kavaliro completely take over the "Healthy 100" motto and lifestyle. Last week she had a chef come and cook us a healthy lunch while teaching us healthy ways to prepare our food. She also has started a contest to see how much cardio every employee does a week. The winner of the contest wins a new pair of sneakers, our choice. She literally makes being healthy FUN. She is an inspiration to everyone here and has helped us on our way to being a healthier company. Not only has she done that, but she has kept the workplace energized and has integrated so many interactive learning activities. It definitely keeps everyone’s spirits up! We just launched our new community webpage: www.fuelingthecommunity.com , which Lisa spear headed. For her to win this award would help with her ongoing charitable donations.
Address: 615 Crescent Executive Ct, Lake Mary, FL 32746
Nominee: Steve Sarowitz, CEO
Nominated By: JoAnn Townes
I would like to nominate our CEO, Steve Sarowitz for the Tom Scalise Leadership Award. He is the picture of health and a great example of workplace wellness. Steve doesn't just train here and there as races or events come up. It's his philosophy and part of what makes him such a great leader of our company...he is training for life! He is 47 years old and an avid runner who can still run a mile under 6 minutes. He is a stickler for healthy eating (gluten and dairy free) and avoids fast food. He does not smoke or drink.
Our corporate office is in Chicago and we have participated in the Chase Corporate Challenge for 12 years because he has encouraged it. He has taken home the MSE award 3 times (2005, 2006 and 2008). Running in Chicago winters or Chicago summers is not for the timid, but Steve doesn't let that hold him back. He leads by example...not just encouraging our workplace to sign up, but signing up first! His enthusiasm and excitement fires up the rest of the office to join in the fun.
We recently opened our Lake Mary, Florida office. Some CEO's might want to check out the nicest restaurant in town or the trendiest bar. No, the first thing Steve did was register our company for the Orlando Corporate 5K. I sent the registration announcement to our office and he was the first to sign up!
Also, our company has a monthly sporting event that we invite everyone to join in to play together. Each month is something different; basketball, softball, bowling, golf, volleyball, etc. He is always encouraging others to participate and of course if he can make it, he is playing! Steve plays basketball once a week and plans on adding a couple of days of swimming to his routine starting next week. He is fit, energetic, fun & everyone’s biggest fan!
Here are just a few pictures of events over the years as examples of his enthusiasm!
Nominee: Joe DeAngelo, CEO
Joe DeAngelo who is the CEO of HD Supply has been the motivating force behind our company of over 15,000 employees to make each individuals health a top priority. Every Monday morning we get a letter from Joe and it contains motivation for our companies goals but also motivation to know our numbers; blood pressure, cholesterol and weight and always to stop tobacco usage. When you read these letters every Monday you know that Joe truly cares about the employees here and he’s not just paying lip service. He recognizes individuals or groups that are doing exceptional things to get healthy. He encourages all of us to be in the best health we can because ultimately that makes us better employees. One last thing Joe does is share the cost of what our health cost this company and by taking better care of ourselves we can reduce the amount that each employee has to pay out of pocket.
Nominee: Larry Tobin
With benefits like 900 dollar annual contributions in a company sponsored Health Savings Account, countless ways of using your sick leave for things other than being sick, annual flu shots, and periodic blood donation events; one can't help but be excited about their wellness at FAIRWINDS. They have found a way to keep me attune with my health because I know when I visit the gym or run a mile, thats more savings being built in that HSA. With health and wealth combined, FAIRWINDS has created a winning proposition. Every year the company adds new policy revisions to keep up with the modern dynamics of corporate wellness. Just this year, they added a partnership with Lifestyle Family Fitness, bringing much needed affordability to our crew. Outside of work opportunities, like the participation in the Corporate 5k, further demonstrate a commitment to facilitating employee wellness. Last year, the company added a wellness revision that allowed crewmembers with more than 40 hours of accumulated sick leave to cash in for their gym memberships. These kind of low level reimbursement plans are almost unheard of in corporate America. During my four year tenure at the Credit Union, I have grown to be a more productive employee, in part due to our corporate health policies. With that said, I would like to honor our CEO for committing to our growth as healthy crewmembers.
Nominee: Joseph Melbourne, CEO
I would like to nominate our CEO Joseph Melbourne of CFE Federal Credit Union. He’s a wonderful role model as a Leader, Community Supporter, Employer, Team Player, Motivator and Gentleman. The national news broadcasts on the devastating economy can be scary to hear a times but after reading a CFE newsletter and seeing the stableness of the CFE Federal Credit Union the membership feels strong and secure. Our CEO Joe Melbourne shows up to our events and gets in there and rolls up his sleeves and works with us! He does just about all the 3K's and 5K's and Charity events galore. He always has his famous smile on. He’s attended numerous employee memorials as well as employees’ family memorials. He has an open door policy. He drops in and checks on the 16 branches to keep in touch with the employees. He's such a generous Human Being and a Great CEO to work for, it would be great to see his efforts awarded.
Nominee: Dr. Trey Himes, Owner
I’d like to place my nomination for Dr. Trey Himes, owner of The Trainers Edge, Inc (Fitness Gym) out of Sanford FL and Vice Principal of Mel Himes & Associates Insurance Agency, Inc. (Deltona, FL).
Trey is a perfect example of healthy leadership for this nomination. For years he has imparted on us, his fellow employees, the importance of eating well, sleeping well and maintaining a physical lifestyle for overall bodily and mental health. He makes his examples to us fun and of course, leads by example. He is a Shaklee distributor and works with a local hospital (Florida Memorial/Fish, Volusia County) to promote fitness for the community members and hospital staff. For a few years now he has worked hand in hand with Fish and his own gym, The Trainers Edge, to promote a local Couch to 5K program. He does not get paid to give his time and energy to promote wellness with this Couch to 5K program. This year, our agency (with a few other companies) is setting up a tent in celebration and promotion of the IOA Corp 5K to further assist the insurance staff in their own fitness growth. We are excited to be sponsors this year and while it won’t be his first race with the IOA Corp 5K, this now ensures we will continue to enjoy this function and now we have our agency employees involved.
I am a long time employee of the Mel Himes and Associates Insurance office and have seen Trey grow throughout the years- in his business life and personal life. He and his wife, Becky (also a personal trainer) have been instrumental in my own maintenance of my health- I am proud to say I am now a “runner” and I would have never been able to without Trey’s help, the Couch to 5K program WORKS! I have seen several people in my office also take control of their fitness with his example and leadership, including myself, of course.
I am PROUD to nominate a friend and strong business leader from my community for this Leadership award and I thank you for your consideration.
Nominee: Rick Serfozo, Deputy Site Director
While the days of crossing the finish line first may be behind Rick Serfozo, as the Deputy Site Director for ATK at Kennedy Space Center he consistently promotes wellness and life balance. He recognizes the importance wellness activities play in the overall morale, health, and cohesion of the team. He has instituted the creation of a local committee to identify and select wellness oriented activities that extend to both employees and their families. Oftentimes, the organization provides partial to full funding to promote participation. Unless commitments draw him away, he’s on the front lines leading the group. For Rick, the bottom line is improved by an attention to the health and well-being of those he provides direction to.
Nominee: Rob Wight, CEO
I'd like to nominate Rob Wight, our CEO, for the Tom Scalise Leadership Award.
We are a small tech startup with about 30 employees. Even though we are always mindful of our budget, Rob constantly goes above and beyond to promote wellness in the workplace even though these measures are often expensive. We have a fully stocked kitchen complete with nutritious and healthy foods like fresh fruits, vegetables, nuts, etc. As a 6 time IRONMAN finisher, he has inspired many of us to swim, bike, and run. Only 5 months ago couldn't run more than a block and this month I completed my first triathlon and another coworker is doing their first triathlon this weekend.
Nominee: Mayellen Goodwin
I am the Wellness Champion for our Orlando site in our company and have received great support from my leadership team. However, there is one in particular that stands out amongst all of them.
Maryellen Goodwin is the Vice President for our Orlando and Tampa Account Management team. Her support to our Wellness Committee has been commendable. She has been a great participant in our workplace activities and supports all of our events. She has been a great leader and exemplifies what the mission of our company stands for: “Helping people live healthier lives”.
