Goodwill West Texas honored 65 of its employees with Smiling G Tenure Service Awards this year. The tenure award celebrations coincided with recognition of store teams who earned $1 million or more in sales in 2022.
Employees receive Smiling G tenure awards for one year of service, then every five years after that. Employees with more than 25 years of service receive honorable mention awards annually. This year in addition to a Goodwill pin and certificate, employees received a $100 bonus in thanks for their dedication and contributions.
Fifty-six of the Smiling G award recipients earned one-year service awards and five employees earned their five-year awards. Midland W. Illinois team member Gary Mercer received his 10-year service award, and Sweetwater employee Joe Deleon received his 25-year service award. Mindy Keesee of Brownwood and Executive Vice President of Operations Jim Tredennick received honorable mention awards for 26 years of service.
In addition to these individual employee awards, four store teams were provided lunch, Goodwill t-shirts, and Goodwill sweaters for achieving $1 million or more in sales.
Approximately 60 percent of the 360+ employees across the Goodwill West Texas territory self-identify as having a disability or disadvantage to employment. They all play a vital role in the success of the retail stores in which they serve, and in turn, the success of the Goodwill mission to provide opportunities for people with barriers to employment. Because of the funds raised in retail stores last year, Goodwill West Texas served more than 2,000 people through its mission programs.
These celebrations and accomplishments are all made possible by the donations generously provided by communities across West Texas. Congratulations to all Goodwill West Texas employees who were honored in these celebrations.