Ethics in action.

THE 9TH ANNUAL COLORADO ETHICS IN BUSINESS AWARDS

a builder, a banker, an issue-maker. Add an advocate/philanthropist businessman and a mega-retailer, and you have the winners of the 9th Annual Colorado Ethics in Business Awards, for-profits and nonprofits that have taken ethical standards an exemplary step higher.

The Colorado Ethics in Business Awards annually go to businesses, nonprofits and individuals that achieve the highest ethical standards, and take that as a starting-off point, a cue to action.

Ethics in business award winners are overachievers, community leaders, and expert weavers of the social fabric. The winners "have achieved success in their own right, have achieved it not only by virtue of (their) work, they've done it in a socially responsible, ethical manner," said Cathy Hart, CEBA steering committee chair and New Century Energies corporate secretary.

"It's one event which recognizes both business organizations and nonprofits for being a role model for how they conduct business and (for) using ethical practices in everything they do," H art said.

Five awardees were chosen from nearly 30 finalists in three categories:

* Three -- Carbondale-based Alpine Bank & Trust; and McStain Enterprises Inc. and Wild Oats Markets, both of Boulder -- won the Business Ethics Award. The award recognizes the companies that best demonstrate business excellence and values, such as civic and social responsibility, integrity and ethical conduct;

* The Colorado Children's Campaign claimed the Samaritan Institute Award. The campaign was named the nonprofit that best illustrates ethical values in its work with the business community.

* Zenon "Zee" Ferrufino was named the Daniel L. Ritchie Award recipient. The Ritchie Award goes to the business person who exemplifies and promotes ethical conduct in his or her business and career.

Winners also were measured against five general criteria: a Colorado effort; the effort's impact relative to available resources; its innovation and creativity; vision, courage and conviction entailed in the effort; and the companies' treatment of others.

A 23-member selection committee of local for- and nonprofit business leaders took roughly two hours to select the winners, said committee Chair Roy Koerner. The selection committee displayed "a really refreshing depth of knowledge," he said.

"This year, I think the committee was struck by the depth of awareness (in winners) trying to do something better for the environment and their fellow man."

Koerner this year devised a rating system that awarded a certain number of points for each criterion. But in the end winners were selected for the breadth and depth of their programs, he said.

Awardees will be honored at a Feb. 24 luncheon at the Colorado Convention Center. As of press time the keynote speaker had yet to be announced. A workshop prior to the event will address Human Capital, or how to fulfill employee needs and wants in a socially responsible company.

Alpine Bank & Trust Business Ethics Award

Started in 1973 in Carbondale by Chairman Bob Young, Alpine Bank & Trust "was really a mirror of the community we served and like any relationship, had to have give and take," Young said. "As we grew, we tried to give back into the community with time and service."

"One thing about them: From the very beginning, the founder had this idea he wanted the bank to be part of the community," said Roy Koerner, chair of the 9th Annual Colorado Ethics in Business Award selection committee. "They're always sensitive to community needs and set up programs to meet those needs. There's not a sense that it's a marketing ploy."

Not only are bank officers encouraged to take part in community organizations, but Alpine's 450 employees -- who own 230/0 of the company -- can take paid time off to participate in community programs of their choice. It's good business, Young said, and is appreciated by both employees and organizations.

Alpine has 26 locations in Colorado, all on the Western Slope, all of which follow Young's ethics credo: "Ethics in business, first and foremost, is being a good community servant, fair to employees ... and to put back in one way or another as much as you extract from the community."

Wild Oats Markets Business Ethics Award

The natural foods retailer's commitment to the environment and community made it stand out to the selection committee, Koerner said. Among other programs, Boulder-based Wild Oats (NASDAQ:OATS) donates 7.5% of its pretax profits to environmental and social causes; buys environmentally friendly produce and products; gives incentives to employees to work in the community; and donates food to communities near its stores.

Begun in 1987 as a "hardcore vegetarian store called the Crystal Market," founding husband-wife team Mike Gilliland and Libby Cook "didn't have any grand ambitions," Gilliland said. Over the years, the couple focused on natural foods, made a small acquisition and watched as the company grew. This year's goal: to be a billion-dollar producer with 125 locations, part of Wild Oats' aggressive growth plans, he said.

All decisions are based on Wild Oats' statement of philosophy, outlined in its staff handbook, Gilliland noted: Responsibility to the bottom line, to staff, to customers and to the communities it locates in -- not necessarily in that order.

McStain Enterprises Inc. Business Ethics Award

Boulder homebuilder McStain Enterprises' focus on green and sustainable building caught the selection committee's attention, Koerner said. "From the beginning (1966), they wanted to be an environmentally sensitive builder (and) make developments that would blend with the environment."

"The way we approach it is to create a more sustainable society," said Tom Hoyt, president, CEO and co-founder with his wife, Caroline Hoyt. McStain tries to make the least environmental impact possible with its developments, he noted. Environmentally, that entails high-density building and clustering houses where possible, eliminating sprawl. It also includes open space and mixed housing, allowing a variety of residents and price levels in a development.

McStain also focuses on energy-efficient homes, with good indoor air quality, recycled or recyclable materials, and use of sustainable materials - from forests that are renewed every 100 to 150 years.

Colorado Children's Campaign Samaritan Award

Its effectiveness and unique ness as an advocate for children s needs, as opposed to hands on work with children, won Colorado Children's Campaign the Samaritan Award, Koerner said Unpresuming, CCC is headquartered in a Denver basement office with a small staff.

The 15-year-old organization focuses on improving conditions of state's low-income children in three areas: education, particularly early childhood ed; health care for children; and children's safety, including changing gun laws, said Executive Director Barbara O'Brien. CCC uses less than 20% of its resources on lobbying, according to IRS rules. Its primary strategy is to build strong public awareness of those issues and create grassroots support for policy changes, she noted.

CCC also is well-known for "having the best data on kids in the state," O'Brien said. "All policy recommendations are based on data. We are very disciplined about the conclusions we draw from the data."

The organization also does not take money from any program it advocates for to the legislature, recognizing the value of being "completely pure," she said. As a result, CCC works hard on fundraising, including an annual corporate lunch, the Colorado shopping card program and funds from most of Colorado's large charitable organizations.

What caught the selection committee's attention about Zenon "Zee" Ferrufino was his "broad base of active involvement with community affairs," particularly with the Hispanic community, Koerner said.

Ferrufino moved to Colorado from Bolivia in 1966 and can claim a string of successful businesses since, including Denver Fine Furniture, Denver Music Distributing and several others. He recently sold KBNO Radio in Denver, although he is still president of its parent, Colorado Communications Corp. His assistance to the Hispanic community includes scholarships and employment assistance, and co-founding the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. He also started the West 32nd Avenue Business Association.

Ferrufino is a baseball commissioner, and has served on the boards of an extensive collection of charities. In 1991, he founded Robbies Friends in memory of his son, which "provides recreational activities to little cancer patients," he said.

"I always believed strongly that one person makes a difference and one vote wins elections," he said. As to ethics, "I believe ethics means honest. You have to be honest with your community, honest with customers, honest with suppliers, honest with employees, and for me, that's the only way you can be successful."