When DISTek began its 25th year in business back in March, we knew we wanted to celebrate this rather significant milestone, maybe have a party, take in a ball game, go out to dinner, or have a family picnic. 25 years ago, any of these ideas would have been possible with not much more effort than calling the wife, locking up the office, and heading uptown. Ah, the simpler times of yesteryear!
Fast forward 25 years – with over 100 employees, 5 offices, and 7 different geographical areas where DISTek has employee-owners – now you’re talking planning committees, brainstorming, researching venues, budgeting, organizing schedules, accommodating different likes and dislikes – it’s a full-blown event!
And what an event it was!
First of all, we didn’t hold the event in March; everyone knows trying to plan something like this around Mother Nature’s temperamental attitude in March is just asking for disaster. So we held a weekend of events in mid-July that consisted of one part business meeting, one part ballgame, one part outdoor picnic, and many parts food and beverage! We even managed to get Mother Nature on our side and provide us with two days in a row of fantastic weather – a feat unto itself!
We started our weekend with a meeting of all DISTek employee-owners that culminated in the revealing of our new ESOP share price – a significant increase from last year’s price that brought applause and even a hoot-n-holler from some of the attendees. This clearly set the mood for celebration and off to the ball game we went.
Employee-owners along with their families were invited to Friday nights Waterloo Bucks game on the party deck, complete with all you can eat and drink. Thanks, Bucks, for giving us a show that included a thrashing of the Rochester Honkers and a post-game fireworks celebration!
On Saturday, the celebration continued, when everyone was invited out to Hick’s Place in Cedar Falls for a full day of food, drink, and entertainment options that ranged from laser tag to fishing to archery and hay rides. Hey, if you went away hungry or thirsty, it was your own fault! Thanks, Hick’s, for a great day. And Mother Nature – well, thanks again!
DISTek has grown over the past 25 years from a single employee-owner to an ever growing and expanding ESOP company (Employee Stock Ownership Plan) with over 100 employee-owners. With “Our People” being one of DISTek’s driving values, celebrations like this are simply a way to give back to the many hard working and dedicated employee-owners (and their families!) that make DISTek the success that it is today. I’m proud to be a DISTek employee-owner and I’m looking forward to our next celebration.
