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Isaacson: How efforts of a local business inspired a corporate giveback trend

Kate Isaacson
Special to the Daily

Encore Electric, based locally in Avon, is probably not a company that is on the forefront of your mind unless you are involved in construction or maybe realized you weren’t quite the electrician you thought you were. This group of intrepid folks is about way more than their motto of “all things power, technology, and energy.” Eagle River Watershed Council feels that they are all things caring, giving and-stewardship.

The Watershed Council staff was touched upon hearing the story of how their cleanup team inspired the entire corporation to give back. The Encore team is always one of the most recognizable groups at both the Watershed Council’s signature cleanup events (The Community Pride Highway Cleanup in spring and the Eagle River Cleanup in fall). With their matching brightly colored shirts and a large crew of people, they stand out, proudly picking up and caring for our local roadways and rivers. The team has told us that the River Cleanup is “one of our favorite events … wouldn’t miss it!”

The Avon Encore crew looks forward to the cleanup events so much that their impact was noticed by their corporate office. By making the event a fun way to bond with their coworkers they proved it is possible to do good and feel good, together. Encore Electric, Inc. (the 36th largest electrical contractor in the nation) now hosts Encore Gives! Day, a community service day for all of their locations, on the same day of the Eagle River Cleanup every year.



Service is a large part of Encore’s company values and their marketing team remarks, “Getting our employees to volunteer comes naturally – they want to do it… We are proud to stand with them as they take responsibility to be good stewards of their communities.” The Avon office leads the charge and Team Leader, Liz Bankert notes, “Our participation in the river cleanup has encouraged our other offices to get more involved in their communities.”

Like a number of other cleanup teams, Encore ensures that their involvement continues. They nurture their employee’s interest in not only the event but in the planning process as well. Their leader, Liz, has stepped aside the past few years to give a new generation of organizers their shot at coordinating the team.

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Bankerttruly believes in the company’s legacy initiatives to guide and train its future leaders. Her mentoring efforts have allowed employees like Nick Signorelli and Courtney Raab to gain skills in organizing and leading volunteer events. Signorelli feels sustainability is an important value.

“It was a pleasant surprise to find out that the Encore Electric Mountain group had the same outlook when I started working for them,” he notes. He went on to say, “Every year we are looking for new creative ways to become more sustainable, whether it’s doing more within the community, making internal changes, or focusing on our environmental impact.”

Raab remarked that being involved in the green team is the part of her job she loves the most. As the 2019 team leader, she commented, “Being Encore’s team leader this year for the River cleanup, I found it very self-fulfilling to be a part of such a wonderful crew, who made my job so easy — they showed up with smiles on their faces ready to clean.”

Because of Bankert’s hard work and the support of Signorelli and Raab, Encore has also been able to maintain their Actively Green status as well as become an ELP Gold Leader in Colorado.

Eagle River Watershed Council is always amazed by the stories of comradery we receive after our cleanup events. We strive to make the cleanup efforts an enjoyable and rewarding experience for all and are pleased to hear outstanding stories like this one. The Watershed Council is proud to work with all our hard-working cleanup teams and looks forward to seeing everyone at the Community Pride Highway Cleanup in the spring!

Kate Isaacson is the projects and events coordinator for Eagle River Watershed Council. The Watershed Council has a mission to advocate for the health and conservation of the Upper Colorado and Eagle River basins through research, education, and projects. Contact the Watershed Council at (970) 827-5406 or visit http://www.erwc.org.


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