Mission 500, a charitable non-profit organization engaging security professionals to raise money for children in need across the USA, has announced the winners of its annual Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Humanitarian awards.

The CSR and Humanitarian awards will be presented on April 12, 2018 at ISC West in Las Vegas. The presentation will be at 5:00 PM on the Security Systems News stage. All are welcome to attend.

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Award

Altronix Corporation is being honored with the 2018 Mission 500 CSR award, which honors companies in the security industry that dedicate significant volunteer time and resources to help those in need.

Giving back is embedded in the culture at Altronix, a global leader in power and data transmission solutions, beginning with the numerous philanthropic efforts of company president, Alan Forman, to help families and children around the world. Altronix employees continuously give back to the security industry through Mission 500 events. Altronix not only provides financial and personal time support to Mission 500, but company employees actively participate in Mission 500 trips, the annual Security Softball Game, the ISC West Security 5k/2k Race and School Refill Packs - activities that all raise significant funds for the Mission 500 organization.

In addition to Altronix, nominees for the CSR award for 2018 included Brinks Home Security, Axis Communications, Power Home Technologies and Security 101, who all deserve recognition for their outstanding efforts.

Past winners of the CSR Award include NorthStar Home, Alliance Security, Fluent Home, Protection 1, Pelco by Schneider Electric, Vivint and Convergint Technologies.

Humanitarian Award

Curtis Kindred, President of American Defense Systems; Harley Schild, President of Vault Security; and Todd Fitch, President of Point Security are honored with the 2018 Mission 500 Humanitarian Award, which acknowledges individuals in the security industry who make important contributions to those in need.

Hurricane Harvey, which hit the Houston, Texas metro area on August 26, 2017, is tied with Hurricane Katrina as the costliest tropical cyclone on record. Harvey inflicted approximately $125 billion in damage, primarily from the catastrophic rainfall that caused widespread flooding.  In a four-day period, Houston and surrounding cities received more than 40 inches of rain as the storm slowly meandered over eastern Texas and adjacent waters, causing unprecedented flooding. The resulting floods inundated hundreds of thousands of homes, displaced more than 30,000 people and prompted more than 17,000 rescues.  

Seeing the devastation and chaos, Kindred, Schild and Fitch could not sit still. They quickly laid out a plan to purchase boats and supplies, and to travel to Houston to help those in need. Using social media and the Zello app, the three men tracked evacuation requests in Houston, Lumberton, Katy, Conroe, Beaumont, Port Arthur and other surrounding cities and rescued nearly 40 people each day from flooded homes. Working with local churches, restaurants and volunteers, they personally spent tens of thousands of dollars and hundreds of hours helping survivors. Their fundraising efforts on social media increased response and donations in the tens of thousands of dollars. Very quickly, they were able to replenish supplies and distribute them directly to people in need.

“We’re thrilled to share this news and to honor these individuals,” said Jeff Eichenlaub, Director of Strategic Partnerships for Mission 500. “They truly represent a cross-section of people doing meaningful work in our community in a wide variety of ways. These are people who have made—and continue to make—a significant difference in the lives of so many in communities across the U.S. and throughout the world.”

Other nominees of the 2018 Humanitarian Award included Ben Brookhart, CEO of Power Home Technologies; Dave Foglio, Founder of First Response Security; Beth Hahn, President of Berkshire Systems Group; Jeff Gardner, CEO of Brinks Home Security; and Jenna Wardle, Global Customer Insights at HID Global.

Past winners of the Humanitarian Award include Jay Gotra, Sean Sportun, Anne Glickstein, Charles “Dom” D’Ascoli, Alan Forman, Mary Jensby, Barb Holliday and Michael Keegan.