Published: June 03, 2008 11:17 pm         

Enid companies honored for family friendliness

4 companies presented Spirit of Family awards

The four businesses honored by the 2008 Spirit of the Family Awards operate on the principle “begin with the end in sight,” Paul Waters, Smart Start Northwest Oklahoma coordinator, said during a luncheon ceremony Tuesday.

“The principle is especially true when you’re talking about young children, and it’s true in business,” Waters said. “It’s obvious these businesses work on this principle.”

The awards, given to Autry Technology Center, Continental Resources, Dexeus Oncology and Ward Petroleum, honor businesses that provide family friendly benefits and policies for their employees.

The fifth annual Spirit of the Family Awards were sponsored by Community Development Support Association Smart Start Northwest Oklahoma, formerly Success by 6.

Accepting the award for Autry were Superintendent Jim Strate and Assistant Superintendent Marcie Mack.

Autry has been serving students since 1967 and currently has the third largest enrollment of all CareerTech centers in Oklahoma. Autry provides health care, dental and retirement benefits to its employees and regularly offers health awareness activities, such as health fairs, blood drives and stroke testing.

Other family friendly features at Autry are a flexible spending account, up to $1,500 per year in tuition for employees to attend accredited colleges and free tuition for many Autry classes for employees. Employees may use sick leave for dependent care and are encouraged to participate at their child’s school.

Continental Resources owner and CEO Harold Hamm accepted the award for his company.

“The Spirit of the Family is just what Enid is about,” Hamm said.

An independent oil and natural gas exploration and production company, Continental was founded in 1967 by Hamm.

Continental provides an on-site fitness facility, annual wellness screenings, on-site aerobics, and offers “Weigh of Life,” a wellness program that educates employees on how to lead a healthy lifestyle.

The company has a donation committee that designates funds to numerous organizations and offers a summer hire program for college students and interns.

Rene Dexeus accepted the award for the 0-50 employees category.

“This is a pretty big honor and it’s nice being in the same group as the people in this room,” Dexeus said.

Established in 1994 by Dr. Francisco and Rene Dexeus, the freestanding privately owned clinic serves approximately 2,000 patients per month.

Dexeus Oncology provides 100 percent of health insurance, retirement benefits and profit sharing for employees.

The clinic also is active in sponsoring numerous community organizations such as the Salvation Army, American Red Cross and Denny Price Family YMCA, in addition to activities such as Relay For Life, mission trips and athletic teams for employees and their children.

Daily lunches and uniforms are provided for all staff.

With more than 57 percent of employees logging more than 20 years with the company, Ward Petroleum President and CEO Bill Ward thanked his long-term employees when accepting the award.

Since the company was founded by Lew Ward in 1963, Ward Petroleum has drilled more than 900 wells in the Anadarko and Arkoma Basins.

Ward Petroleum has had a Quality of Life Committee for 18 years that recommends benefit improvements and holds special events each month for employees. A monthly newsletter also is published to focus on communication within the company and in the lives of employees. Employees’ children can receive $1,000 per semester for college grade averages of 3.0 and above.

Advance Food Co., a 2004 recipient of the award, was honored with the first-ever Spirit of the Family Award of Excellence.

The company has made “continuing strides” in employee policies and benefits since 2004, Waters said.

Accepting the award were Brian Hayden, vice president of human resources, and Paul Allen, co-founder.

“We wouldn’t exist if it weren’t for the cooperation we’ve received from the city of Enid,” Allen said. “It’s a win-win situation.”

Benefits include subsidized childcare and an emergency no-interest loan program that has loaned nearly $1 million to employees in the past 10 years. A college tuition assistance program for employees offers $1,500 per year for CareerTech or undergraduate programs and $3,000 per year for graduate work. A first-time homebuyer program assists employees in basic housing needs. Advance also offers a company sponsored medical clinic for employees and their families with a strong focus on wellness and healthy living.

Guest speaker for the luncheon Bill Millet, of Scopeview Strategic Advantage in Charlotte, N.C., spoke about the importance of early education for economic development.

“Kids with early education are tax generators, not tax consumers,” he said.

Today’s economy, Millet said, is knowledge driven, and intellectual capitol is a critical business asset.

Talking about early education in business terms — “ROI (return on investment) rather than ABC” — is the “winning argument” for receiving legislative funding for early education, Millett said.

“Early education launches children into an academic trajectory,” he said, using a space analogy. “It also launches regions into an economic trajectory.”

Former Spirit of the Family award winners include: St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center, Advance, Parrish Enterprises, Integris Bass Baptist Health Center, Johnston Enterprises, Triangle Companies, Mid-America Wholesale, Security National Bank, Oklahoma Natural Gas, Bank of America, Dr. Greg Walton, Phillips Drug, Wymer, Brownlee and Associates and Collins, Butler & Company.

The award-winning businesses completed a survey presented by Smart Start, the organization sponsoring the awards, in order to recognize the most family friendly companies.

The Spirit of the Family awards highlight those businesses based on survey questions involving community involvement, family resources, flexibility of work schedule, retirement and savings plans, health insurance and financial offerings, parental leave and dependent care.