ECI celebrates its customers behind the 141 Project, BeLEAF Survivors and The Silver Coin Project for positively impacting the lives of others.
ECI Software Solutions announced the winners of its 8th Annual Everyday Hero Awards, which recognises customers dedicated to making a difference for others and giving back to their communities.
Sven Gustafson of Stonewood, a custom home builder in Minnesota, is the grand prize winner of the 2023 Everyday Hero Award for his charity work with the 141 Project that is focused on building homes for families in need around the world. For the grand prize winner, ECI will make a $15,000 (€13,717) donation to the charity of Gustafson’s choice.
The 141 Project is a faith-based organisation focused on building homes for families in need to help end generational poverty. The unique business model uses move-in gift money to purchase materials and build homes in under-resourced parts of the world. For every new home built in the US, another one is built for a family in one of the program’s global partner communities that hire local builders to complete the project—gifting safety, stability and hope as a catalyst for change.
Nominations for ECI’s Annual Everyday Hero Awards are submitted by ECI employees, customers and partners and evaluated by a panel of judges. The 2023 runners up include:
- First runner-up: Scott Kinderman of Drewco Corp, an industrial equipment supplier in Wisconsin, won $10,000 (€9,143) for his work with BeLEAF Survivors, a charitable organisation dedicated to promoting hope and healing for victims of sexual assault, child abuse and neglect. Kinderman works as a BeLEAF board member, advocate and supporter, volunteering his time in emergency rooms with survivors, promoting healing and providing empathy.
- Second runner-up: Darko Ristic of W&E Platt, a global supplier of weapon mounts and ordnance systems for law enforcement and military entities in New South Wales, Australia, and his wife Jenny won $5,000 (€4,572) to support The Silver Coin Project, a non-profit, family-run organisation that leads fund-raising efforts to purchase uniforms, lunches, supplies and other needs for disadvantaged students in local primary schools. To date, The Silver Coin Project has helped thousands of students in 23 schools in the Macarthur area of Australia.
“The housing crisis touches every corner of the world, and we’re incredibly inspired by Sven and his team for the work they do with the 141 Project to help end generational poverty, one family at a time,” said Trevor Gruenewald, Chief Executive Officer at ECI. “The 2023 class of Everyday Heroes demonstrates an exceptional commitment to community service. The 141 Project, BeLEAF Survivors and The Silver Coin Project embody the fundamental values of community engagement, and we’re honoured to work with customers who have a passion for uplifting and empowering others.”
Nominations for ECI’s 9th Annual Everyday Hero Awards opens in spring 2024. For more information and to watch these heroes’ stories, visit the Everyday Hero webpage.
