Honoring a Special Olympics Coach

From brand exposure to product promotion, donations benefit our company in many ways. But the joy we get from them does not come from those benefits. It comes from knowing we have helped others in some way. Here at Coller Industries Incorporated, we take our responsibility to the community seriously. So, we are always looking for donation opportunities. Recently, we had the privilege of giving back to our local community here in Salt Lake County, Utah. Give a big cheer to our latest donation recipient: The Panthers Special Olympics Utah Team.

Examples of Coller Industries Incorporated products, including name tags, badge holder, name plate, award plaque, lanyard and rosette ribbon.

A Special Olympics team pays tribute to their coach a month after her passing.

The mission of Special Olympics is to provide year-round sports training and athletic competition in a variety of Olympic-type sports for children and adults with intellectual disabilities, giving them continuing opportunities to develop physical fitness, demonstrate courage, experience joy and participate in a sharing of gifts, skills and friendship with their families, other Special Olympics athletes and the community.

Vertical Graphic Ribbons

A purple ribbon with a vertical orientation, imprinted with gold text and a heart graphic used for special olympics.

Made of quality satin, Vertical Graphic Ribbons are a popular choice for fundraisers, conventions and trade shows. While they are often used to promote products, services or sales, graphic ribbons can serve almost any purpose. And, they let you add a graphic or logo to go with your text. Customize the size, font, imprint and material colors to make these ribbons right for you. With different fastener options available, attach the ribbons to a piece of clothing or wear them with a name tag.

We donated 500 Vertical Graphic Ribbons to help the Panthers pay tribute to their former coach, Agnes Marino. A long time volunteer, she passed away September 17, 2019. Keith Tondro, an Assistant Equipment Manager for Special Olympics, spoke highly of Marino. “She gave many years of service and has been an icon for Special Olympics. These ribbons will be worn by the athletes as they compete in the Fall Sports Classic on October 18 and 19, 2019 in golf, bocce and soccer.”

The athletes wore purple badge ribbons to honor their coach as they competed in different locations in Salt Lake City, Utah. The ribbons included a heart with the name of their team and former coach. With the memory of Marino in their hearts, they played bocce ball at Northwest Middle School, golf at Rose Park Golf Course and soccer at Salt Lake Regional Athletic Complex. They did Marino proud by placing third in soccer, even while playing in stormy weather. Tondro said, “The Panthers fought hard and played well.”

Tondro, whose son, Darrell Tondro, is on the Panthers team, describes how Special Olympics benefits people with disabilities.

“Developing skills, building self-esteem and having fun, all while participating in year-round sports training and competition, is the life of a Special Olympics Utah athlete. Whatever their skill level, with eight sports to choose from, plus the Motor Activities Training Program (MATP), Special Olympics Utah has something for every person with an intellectual disability.”

No matter what product we donate, it is always a privilege to support organizations like Special Olympics. And this time, we got to help pay tribute to a woman who, like us, wanted to give back to the community. For us, giving back through donations is a way of saying thank you to those who make our company successful. After all, where would we be without the people in this community, our customers. So, thank you Special Olympics Utah for letting us serve you and your remarkable athletes. Go Panthers!

The Panthers Special Olympics Utah Team honor a former coach by wearing custom badge ribbons during their Fall Sports Classic in Salt Lake City, Utah on October 18 and 19, 2019.

Fashionable Ribbons & Spina Bifida

Fashionable Ribbons and a donation to Spina Bifida Texas

From getting branding exposure to making ribbons fashionable and promoting products and services, giving back to the community is hugely beneficial for any business. But, it isn’t about what you get in return for your efforts. It’s about who you are helping.

And, here at Coller Industries, we understand that helping out in our community is fashionable. The best thing we get back when we give is the knowledge that we have helped someone. Investing in the community by donating our products is one of our best forms of marketing. But again, it isn’t just about the marketing possibilities; it’s about the people. So, no matter the need, every donation we make comes with the knowledge that what we do is important for everyone.

This Week’s Donation Spotlight: Spina Bifida Texas (SBTX)

Spina Bifida Texas and their FashionABLE programs

The mission of SBTX is to improve the lives of those affected by Spina Bifida and to promote its prevention through folic acid awareness. Our aim is to increase the quality of life of those with disabilities through our programs and resources. Our goal is to decrease the incidence of Spina Bifida through folic acid awareness. At Spina Bifida Texas (SBTX) we value community, education, and family.

Custom Badge Ribbons (Vertical)

Whether horizontal or vertical, these fashionable custom badge ribbons are perfect for any event. They make beautiful awards and also aid in recognizing and identifying sponsors, attendees and so much more. Use these vertical text and graphic ribbons and customize them to fit all of your event needs. Add nearly any text you need and even custom logos and graphics. Choose from a variety of fonts and ribbon and imprint colors to match your event’s theme or to add a pop of color to add to name badges and badge holders.

custom badge ribbons are a fashionable item to have at any event

Elizabeth Rivera, Project Coordinator for the SBTX FashionABLE event, provided this excellent description of the organization and event.

FashionABLE (as in “I am able”) is a one-of-a-kind program that started 12 years ago. SBTX partners high school design students with children who have disabilities. The high school students are tasked with creating a garment specific to the child’s needs. Children with physical disabilities and their families face challenges in many areas, and this is frequently true where clothing is involved. These children often have self-esteem issues, especially with their physical appearance as it may not be what society considers the ‘norm.’ Their bodies may not be proportional and finding clothing that fits is difficult.

Mobility issues require that many children use orthotics or prosthetics to assist them in their daily activities. These devices are often bulky, which also poses a problem when trying to find clothing. Many of these children have issues with fine motor skills and buttons and zippers sometimes become an obstacle when they try to dress independently. Some of the children are totally dependent on their caregivers for all their needs and finding clothing that is easily slipped on and off is sometimes difficult. Our program was developed to address these issues in an innovative way.

Creating a “FashionABLE” Community

Understanding our community needs teaches that no matter the setting, there are things to constantly focus on to keep it healthy. In order to help people feel that they belong somewhere, we support and manage these insights. And this comes with accepting each other and the diversity of those around you. This community understanding makes us responsible for those around us. This community responsibility not only aids those in need, but assists everyone influenced by any actions in that community. And, we think that is just like this organization: fashionable!

Donations are one way that makes us more responsible in our community. And, building trust in our community is not only a requirement but also the best way to maintain any community. This unified trust is why we, as a company, are always looking to help out in our neighborhood and surrounding areas.

Customer Donations: Dorset Equine Rescue

From amazing customer service to providing donations, Coller Industries is all about helping others.

When one thinks of personalized identification, name tags come to mind almost immediately. However, personalized ribbons are a large part of identification needs as well. Coller Industries prides ourselves on our service, professionalism and production in these fantastic products. Our main focus is always helping our customers. As part of this, we often provide donations to those in need.

Once again, we were able to donate to a wonderful cause.

The Dorset Equine Rescue is a non-profit organization located in East Dorset, Vermont. The organization rescues horses and aids in the healing process which restores their health and wellness until they can be adopted.

Kayla Chilcote is hosting an event for the organization. “The mission and goals (for the event) are to raise money for the Equine Rescue so they can continue to give proper care and help pay for the costs they have to pay (for each of the horses they rehabilitate).”

The Dorset Equine Rescue strives to educate the community about all matters of horse care, health, and advocacy to continuously improve the long-honored and time-tested human-equine partnership.

The event that Chilcote is hosting in September will be to benefit the Gymkhana event. It is an event consisting of speed pattern racing and timed games for riders on horses. Often, these events emphasize children participation.

Coller Industries was able to help with the award ribbons for the event.

Stock Victory Torch Ribbons
These award ribbons can be used for any competition or event. They have an attached event card on the back and a string through the top that can be used to display the ribbon. Available in first through tenth place and other titles. Each ribbon has a pinked bottom edge in order to reduce fraying.

“(I’m very grateful that your) company helped us out so we can give the ones who compete the ribbons they deserve since they have donated to the rescue,” said Chilcote.

We are grateful for organizations such as the Dorset Equine Rescue. We sincerely hope that all of our donations are something that helps our customers in their efforts in their communities.

Customer Donations: Curry Senior Center

Providing customer donations is part of who we are.

From ribbons to name tags, Coller Industries is your go-to specialist for personal identification needs. While we do pride ourselves on our service and professionalism in producing these fantastic products, our main focus is to help you, our customers! And part of this is to donate what we can, whenever we can. These donations are truly something that helps us stand out from our competition.

This month we were able to help out a wonderful cause.

In the heart of San Francisco, Curry Senior Center, named after its namesake Dr. Francis J. Curry, has been a leader and a lifeline to seniors for nearly 40 years. Right in their own neighborhood, seniors can easily access a wide range of integrated services through Curry, from health care to housing and everything in between; it is comprehensive care in a single setting.

“Curry Senior Center’s Annual Gala (Helping Hands, Healing Hearts) is the single largest fund raising effort for the organization each year. This is due to taking a highly personalized, family-focused approach to our sponsors and donors. Part of that focus includes the use of name badge ribbons to highlight leadership roles and award winners at the gala. These lend an air of sophistication and importance not previously experienced until our use of Coller Industries’ highest quality of products.” says Tod Thorpe, Director of Development at Curry Senior Center.

“Our mission is to provide services to seniors that promote independent living while maintaining their dignity and self-esteem,” explains Thorpe.

Curry Senior Center is where more than 2,000 seniors, regardless of income or insurance, have access to top-notch health care as well as meals, housing, and social services in their own neighborhood. This helps meet seniors’ essential needs and lets them stay as active and socially connected as possible as they age.

Curry Senior Center received 62 of these badge ribbons. Badge ribbons can be printed with information to identify speakers, staff or an assortment of other functions during conferences and other meetings. The donated ribbons were all imprinted with different titles or awards to help the recipients stand out. Each of these ribbons can be fully personalized to meet any need.

“A ribbon may seem like a small thing but not when it makes our supporters feel special and cared for; that is priceless. Thanks to Coller Industries so much for your generosity!” expressed Thorpe.

Donation Spotlight: Classical Conversations

Another year and what a great way to start it out! Coller Industries is happy to say that we enjoy giving back to our community. And what better way to do that than with a donation of goods. This time around we are highlighting Classical Conversations.

“At Classical Conversations, we believe that every child is uniquely and wonderfully made. Classical Conversations exists to assist homeschooling parents in educating their children,” said Lynne Roberts, Challenge B Director, with Classical Conversations. “We believe there are three keys to a great education: the classical model of learning, taught within the framework of a Christ-centered worldview, in a supportive community.”

Homeschooling is a journey. Classical Conversations is with you every step of the way from little scribblers to the middle school years all the way through to graduation.

Roberts said, “We believe in cultivating great conversations. Nelson Mandela said, ‘Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.’ Through our challenge programs, we give the students an opportunity to become lifelong learners and lovers of God’s creation.”

Classical Conversations empowers parents to establish local communities in which parents and students meet once a week during the school year. Each community also consists of programs led by a trained parent-director.

Seven award ribbons were donated from Personalized Ribbons. Each ribbon will be awarded to eighth grade students who have participated in a science fair. Each student will present a hypothesis, procedure, results/conclusions and a research paper. In addition, they will present their findings by giving an oral presentation along with a science fair board. Each presentation will be given to the entire Classical Conversation St. Petersburg community, about 130 people.

As we have strive to keep busy in our communities, donations have truly set Coller Industries apart. And the best part is that we get to help and participate in extraordinary events such as this science fair!