ISSUE 6, 2019 MEET THE BREAKFAST CLUB Pg. 4 ADJUSTABLE CONCRETE CONSTRUCTION HIGH VOLUME, RECORD TIME Pg. 8
Don’t Miss the Merry Mixer!
Pg. 10
MESSAGE
MARTY
It is difficult to imagine we are in the final days of this decade. So much has happened in the last ten years— wonderful victories and painful losses. The psalmist wrote, “Teach us to number our days so that we may gain a heart of wisdom.” Each day is an opportunity to make a positive impact in the lives of those around us – our fellow coworkers, our customers and so many others in the communities we have the privilege to serve. The holiday season has a tendency to get very busy. During the busyness, I strongly encourage you to pause, give thanks and celebrate life. I’m learning that gratitude and generosity are wonderful antidotes to the harried tendencies of the holiday season.
EACH DAY IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE A POSITIVE IMPACT IN THE LIVES OF THOSE AROUND US
On a personal note, I want to share that this time of year is especially meaningful for our family. It is this time of year that we have the privilege and freedom to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. He is the most important gift
to us. His gift is a free gift of grace. We haven’t earned it, but we are filled with joy to receive Him and all the love He offers to us as a Wonderful Counselor, a Mighty God, an Everlasting Father, a Prince of Peace. Thank you for your efforts to positively impact people. I’m confident that together we are doing great work that is impacting people beyond what we can imagine. I look forward to entering a new decade with you! From our family to yours, Merry Christmas!
ant to w e W r from hea
YOU!
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Have something to share? Email internalcomms@ozinga.com with your story, news, idea, etc. and look for it in the next issue of the newsletter.
COWORKERS Purpose Story: Paul Winkle Sr. Sometimes setbacks have a way of defining the path we embark on. For Paul Winkle Sr., Ready Mix Sales in South Florida, what he thought was a career-ending medical setback ultimately opened the door to fulfilling his purpose. Paul has been with Ozinga for 55 years. He first started as a driver in 1964 at Ozinga’s first yard in Evergreen Park, IL when the company only had nine trucks. In the years since then, Paul has built relationships with countless customers who love him. But in 2003, Paul lost his voice to cancer, and his hope of continuing a successful career with Ozinga seemed lost—he didn’t know how he could continue to do a job he loved and worked hard for without the ability to speak. “When I lost my voice in 2003, Marty Ozinga II and Marty Ozinga III came to visit me at the hospital after my laryngectomy surgery,” said Paul. “I looked up at them and wrote, ‘I guess I’m done’.” But what Paul didn’t expect to happen next changed his entire perspective. “They prayed with me and said, ‘You’re not done; if you can write, you have a job’.” At first, Paul had to do everything in writing. Having a mortgage and kids to take care of wasn’t making matters any easier, but he was determined. That’s when he met doctors and specialists who introduced him to a speaking instrument, called an electrolarynx, that helped him talk again. “I came back to work after about six months and I was using my instrument,” said Paul. “Every night, I would practice my ABCs.” For hours, Paul would work on his pronunciation. After a while, he was able to order cheeseburgers from the drive-through again. Today, Paul is living his purpose and traveling all over the country to conventions to give other laryngectomees – patients facing the same setback Paul was many years ago – hope. “[Paul] brings all of the positive spirit possible to how he lives each day and contributes back to others,” said Philip Doyle, Professor and Senior Research Scientist. “While some might see the loss of his normal voice as a disability, it obviously has not stopped him from moving forward and living each day to the fullest.” When Paul is asked why he continues to help others, he says, “I want people to know that if I can do it, you can do it; giving others hope makes me feel good.”
Share Your Purpose Story Ozinga wants to know how you or your coworkers are living our purpose to make a positive impact on individuals, their families and the community for generations.
Email internalcomms@ozinga.com to share your story.
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COWORKERS
Meet the Breakfast Club
Left to right: Hank Huizinga, Sid Jabaay, Dave Jonkman, Ken Metzger, John Alderen, Dave Bruinius, Bruce DeVries
It might seem like an ordinary group of friends getting together for breakfast… They meet every second Saturday of the month at Olympic Star Restaurant in Tinley Park and it’s not the breakfast special that keeps them coming back. They all retired from Ozinga and this meeting place provides them an opportunity to stay in touch, share stories and laughs. At their November breakfast, Sharon Simons, Administrative Support, stopped by to bring the retirees new Ozinga hats. “For many of them, this is like their second family,” said Sharon. “They have been meeting at the same place at the same time for a good five years.”
CONGRATS
Calling all Ozinga retirees!
Congratulations to the following coworkers who recently retired:
If you have something you’d like to share in the upcoming newsletter, email internalcomms@ozinga.com or contact Kristi Munno at 708.326.4582.
to Jerry & Paul!
Jerry Janes - Driver, Evanston Paul Hartung - Driver, Jarvis 4
We want to hear your stories!
COWORKERS Coworker Survey A special thank you to everyone who completed the Coworker Experience Survey last month. We had 70% participation from people all across the organization. It all begins with you, the most important asset to the business - our people. Without your responses, it would be difficult to get a true pulse of the experience of working here, and how well we are living out our purpose of having a positive impact on individuals, their families and the community for generations. As we start discussing results, detailed information will be shared with local groups and within the various business units. It will take us working together as one team to share ideas to ensure that Ozinga continues to thrive in the areas where we are already doing well, and also to work hard where the results show we have significant opportunities for improvement. Stay tuned for results!
Update Your Personal Information With the end of the year quickly approaching, now is a great time to log into Paylocity and review/update the following: Emergency contact information Personal email address Beneficiary information
New this year: Elect to receive your W2 electronically. Log into Paylocity to make this election. 5
COWORKERS Tips & Tricks: Microsoft Outlook Image of the Month
If you use the Microsoft Outlook App & Authenticator App on your phone, you don’t have to type in your password OR a text code every 14 days. You simply hit “Accept” and you’re good to go. If you want to know more, call or email the HelpDesk!
Cyber Safety - The Dangers of Phishing and Malware
Lightning Strike Damage
Don’t reuse passwords for any of your accounts. This allows for a centralized point of compromise, and once frauds have a password of yours, they can get access to any of your accounts. Keep your passwords unique.
A Peek at the Geeks: Meet Logan VanProyen | Business Systems Analyst Since June 2016 What is your favorite part about working for Ozinga? I’m constantly challenged with new projects/ideas and I can own them and see great ideas come to reality. What is on your bucket list? Go to the highest point in every U.S. state What did you want to be when growing up? A cartoon voice actor
What others are saying about Logan: What’s your favorite part of working with Logan? Logan has such a bright, positive outlook on life. It’s contagious! When you think of Logan, what is your first thought? Man, he sure uses a lot of hand sanitizer. Tell us a short story about Logan. When I first started at Ozinga, I was working on a report query that Logan had worked on. In the middle of that query, he commented on something along the lines of “It’s a beautiful day. Be happy”. The message was such a great reminder to take a deep breath and enjoy the day, especially when you are in the middle of a stressful project. It was a very “Logan” thing to do, and things like that make you realize how special he really is! 6
COWORKERS
HOLIDAY REMINDER As you spend some hard-earned time off with family and friends this holiday season, remember they are the real reason why we work safely. The true goal of safety is to get home every night to do the things you enjoy. The Safety Department hopes you have a happy—and safe—holiday season. - Jeff Emrick Questions? Email jeffemrick@ozinga.com
VISITOR SAFETY Safety is always top of mind at Ozinga. As our company continues to grow, it’s not only important to take actions to stay safe at offices, yards and job sites, but also to play it safe when it comes to visitors to our locations. While we are a welcoming company focused on making a positive impact on our coworkers, customers and community, it’s important to follow these best practices should someone arrive at your location you do not recognize: Ask for validation, whether a badge, ID card, etc. Don’t hesitate to contact the company or department they state they are from for validation. Don’t disclose any inside information, such as names of other coworkers, or give access to Ozinga facilities or resources. (For instance, if a visitor says they’re from IT, don’t ask them if they work with Keith Onchuck. Instead, ask them for the name of their supervisor.) If you cannot verify someone’s identity or feel uneasy, do not hesitate to contact your local authorities. Taking a few additional minutes to verify someone’s identity helps to keep Ozinga and our coworkers safe. Thank you for doing your part.
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CUSTOMERS HIGH VOLUME, RECORD TIME Adjustable Concrete Construction specializes in high rise projects and have been innovators since 1935. The recent Fulton and Ogden job was nothing like they had ever done before. Their typical floor plate job varies from about 7,000-16,000 square feet; this job had 32,000 square feet. That is about two to three high rise jobs all on the floor at the same time. This project came specified as a steel and concrete job—a traditional Chicago office building. Building this way saves money and gets to the market faster, adding value to owners searching for tenants. By recognizing the solution to shift the building to concrete, Adjustable gave the owner and general contractor the opportunity to finish first. The speed at which Adjustable constructed this job was a major accomplishment. There were a lot of moving parts that had potential to severely delay progress. Maintaining the multi-stationary concrete pump and tower crane operation each day without an issue was a big deal. Not only was the speed challenging to perform, but quality needed to be up to standard. For this project, they were all exposed to finishes, meaning the concrete needed to be put in place quickly. Adjustable thought outside the box to make the budget work and provide solutions to move the project forward. Each worker and partner on site was critical to accomplishing this lofty goal. “What goes into making that happen is really the most challenging piece because it obviously starts with great delivery from Ozinga,”said Eric Lindquist, President of Adjustable Concrete Construction. “Having consistent service is a big deal with concrete delivery.” “It’s difficult to be a contractor in Chicago; it’s a very competitive market,” Lindquist said. “But life is too short to be working for people who don’t treat you fairly or do business the right way. It’s usually an easy decision for us on what 8
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CUSTOMERS Continued from page 8 jobs to pursue based on the trust factor. The best jobs are the ones where you sign a contract and you never look at the contract again. Everybody is working on the same page to do the job, and if you make a mistake, you correct it together.” With the help from Ozinga, this job was completed two months ahead of schedule. “If you would have asked me if we could shave that much time off, I would have laughed,” Lindquist said. “But this was special.” Working through parts of a project that are totally out of your control can be very tough, but with great people and reliable partners, the unthinkable can happen. Adjustable Concrete Construction and Ozinga have had a partnership for more than 20 years. Together, there’s nothing we can’t handle.
ORGANIZATIONAL ANNOUNCEMENT An exciting announcement was made earlier
Kim Herlihy will be the Vice President
this October—the formation of a new entity
of Finance for OML, reporting to Don
called Ozinga Capital Ventures. This entity
Van Dyk. Kate Radtke and Rod Buikema
will manage investments that Ozinga has in
will report to Kim.
businesses outside of our core construction materials business, along with the process for considering future companies for potential investment.
We know that these changes will generate questions, and we are still working through some of the details. However, we want to hear from you! Please send the questions
Ozinga Capital Ventures will be led by Aaron
on your mind to internalcomms@ozinga.
Ozinga and Josh Bailey. Aaron will serve
com. We will do our best to share with
as President and Josh Bailey will serve as
you as much information as we can - as
Vice President.
soon as we can.
Ozinga Materials & Logistics will operate
Thank you for all that you’re doing to live
under the leadership of OML Chief
into our purpose of making a positive
Operating Officer Ed Van Poucke, reporting
impact on individuals, their families and
to Marty IV. Steve King will continue to
the community for generations, and for
serve as Executive Vice President, OML
embracing these changes as we build our
Sales and Business Development, and
future together.
Isaac Yun will also report to Ed. 9
COMMUNITY
There’s still time to see the Merry Mixer! Visit ozinga.com/merrymixer or the Merry Mixer Facebook page for details. December 17 Hickory Creek Church - Frankfort, IL December 21 Brookfield Zoo Holiday Magic - Brookfield, IL December 22 Christmas in the Commons - New Lenox, IL December 23 Parkview Christian Church - New Lenox, IL
A whopping 1,200 lbs. of food was collected by the Indiana East and West regions to benefit the Food Bank of Northern Indiana. With this collection of goods, we were able to provide 600 meals for those in need. We’d like to thank everyone who participated and look forward to another successful drive next year!
An Unexpected Phone Call by Connie Sylvester, Executive Assistant I received a call from a gentleman asking to speak with Tim Ozinga, the “owner of Ozinga.” He was insistent on speaking with an owner regarding the problem he had with our light-up truck (The Merry Mixer). I mentioned that I was Tim’s assistant and was happy to help him with whatever he needed. He then proceeded to tell me he was with the Mrs. Illinois program and was driving the car that hosted these ladies in the parade. In his next breath, he said he was suing us for bringing the truck to the parade. I immediately went into defense mode and asked what had happened. He then said the truck stole the show and had such a positive response from the crowd that he wanted to call and thank us for doing something so great. He laughed and said he really was just so thrilled to see the people singing and being cheerful when the truck was coming by. He wanted to thank Ozinga and all who were involved. He specifically mentioned the skill of the driver (Al Aardsma) and his awareness of pedestrians and people constantly moving around the truck. Wanted to share this. It becomes long, tiresome and cold, but know that you are truly living our purpose and making an impact on many hearts and smiles! 10
COMMUNITY A Purpose Story Saying “yes” to serve others can sometimes open doors to new opportunities. For Josh Bailey, Vice President of Capital Ventures, saying yes to a volunteer opportunity set him on a path of professional and spiritual growth. Josh vividly remembers sitting in church three years ago when the pastor began talking about Reclaim13, an organization that helps free children from sexual exploitation. The organization is called Reclaim13 because 13 has been estimated as the average age at which a child is drawn into the commercial sex industry, and the group’s goal is to reclaim children’s right to grow up free from harm – loved and safe. It was in that powerful moment that Josh realized he needed to get involved to do something to help the organization and the children they support. Josh’s background in finance was just what the Reclaim13 board was looking for in a treasurer, and Josh found serving on the board to be a great way to contribute to the nonprofit. During this time, Josh was also introduced to Justin Ozinga, also an active member on the board. That initial meeting with Justin led to a follow-up meeting with Aaron Ozinga and the rest of the Materials & Logistics team, which was also looking for financial leadership. Soon after, Josh joined Ozinga. Before joining Ozinga, Josh recalls his previous work culture as “profit above all else.” Businesses were usually in distress and less than generous with the community. “Working for Ozinga has empowered me to give more and take care of what matters first,” Josh said. The work that Reclaim13 is doing in Chicagoland communities to stop child sex trafficking creates a positive impact on the lives of all they serve; and Josh, Justin and all of Ozinga are proud to help support them in their mission. “For me, this mission is very important,” said Josh. “The women in my life have made such a positive impact on me and I’ve always loved children. I was compelled to do this.”
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