RETAIL : Charity Begins in Orco Block Offices, and So Does Good Public Relations

For about a decade, a Stanton construction firm has given 5% of its pretax profits to charity.

That gesture alone was enough to earn Rick Muth, president of the Orco Block Co., a distinguished service award from the Orange County chapter of the Public Relations Society of America.

“They have utilized good, basic public relations,” said Laer Pearce, an Irvine public relations executive who helped to emcee the awards event this week.

Robert Rayfield, a communications professor at Cal State Fullerton, also won a distinguished service award for his various extracurricular activities over the years. Rayfield has served in several posts for the national public relations group, including chairman of the educators’ section and membership in the issues and policy committee and executive committee.

The Best of Show award went to Kathy Edsen of AC&R; in Irvine for work on a newsletter for Pirelli tire dealers.

Communication with the tire dealers is important, Pearce said, because most of them offer several competing brands. The newsletter “helped to reinforce a good strong performance image for Pirelli.”

All told, 143 agencies competed for 22 coveted Protos awards in the contest, which was judged by a PRSA chapter in Northern California.