Three longtime associates of ABC Supply Co. Inc. were honored with the inaugural Ken Hendricks Awards. The awards were presented Thursday, June 13, during ABC Supply’s annual Founders’ Celebration event at the company’s National Support Center headquarters in Beloit.

BELOIT, Wis. – Three longtime associates of ABC Supply Co. Inc. were honored with the inaugural Ken Hendricks Awards. The awards were presented Thursday, June 13, during ABC Supply’s annual Founders’ Celebration event at the company’s National Support Center headquarters in Beloit.

ABC Supply is a wholesale distributor of siding, windows and other select exterior building products. The Ken Hendricks Award has been created to honor the memory of ABC Supply’s co-founder, Ken Hendricks, and to highlight the values that he championed and that have driven ABC Supply since its establishment in 1982 – Respect, Opportunity, Work Hard – Have Fun, Entrepreneurial Spirit, Family, Give Back and American Pride. It is the most prestigious distinction bestowed by the company.

The 2011 honorees are:

Don Hamby, Branch Manager - Lake Worth, Fla., who joined the company in 1986 to assist Hendricks with ABC Supply’s business development efforts in Florida. Nominators commented on the extent to which Hamby’s philosophy and approach mirror those of Hendricks, who he considered a mentor. For Hamby, respect has always been a core value and “work hard – have fun” are truly words to live by.

Jim Gann, District Manager – Alabama/Tennessee, who joined the company in 1990 when he sold his own wholesale distribution company to ABC Supply. Throughout his career with ABC Supply, Gann has retained a strong entrepreneurial spirit and repeatedly taken on new challenges. He is described as the consummate teacher and a devoted family man whose expansive definition of family can include anyone he takes responsibility for.

Jeff Ploch, District Manager – Wisconsin, who started with ABC Supply as a truck driver in 1987. Ploch works tirelessly to ensure that associates in his district make the most of the opportunities ABC Supply provides and that he has also enjoyed. He lives modestly and envisions creating a charitable fund that would be administered by his children and their descendants.

All three honorees are being recognized for their continued excellence in performance, dedication, commitment and desire to improve themselves and others, said Kim Hendricks, vice president of organizational development.

“These men have demonstrated character that is true to the core values of ABC Supply,” she said. “Our company was built on these values and they remain at the heart of ABC Supply’s culture. This award is another way to reinforce what has made ABC Supply the extraordinary company that it was in the beginning, that it is today and that it will continue to be tomorrow.”