Integra Optics’ Employee Earns Toys for Tots’ Top Coordinator Award!

LATHAM, N.Y., September 28,2015 – Integra Optics’ Logistics Supervisor, Albert Roman Jr., was recently named the 2014 Toys for Tots’ Coordinator of the Year for the Northeast region by the Marine Corps’ Toys for Tots Foundation. He also received the 2014 Local Community Organization Campaign of the Year award for the Northeast region.

Out of 130 Toys for Tots campaigns within the Northeast that were considered for the 2014 season, Roman’s Albany, NY-based campaign was chosen to receive the award, and Roman was selected as Coordinator of the Year for leading the tremendously successful campaign.

In total, six campaign winners were selected for the award – one for each region in the U.S., and a National campaign winner was chosen as well. The campaign winners were determined by a number of different criteria, including: scope of campaign and area covered, responsiveness to the Foundation and local requests, interaction with local businesses/media/schools/organizations, maximizing use of monetary donations to purchase toys, accuracy in record keeping, and efficiency in depositing donations.

Roman was honored for his contributions to the organization at the 2015 Toys for Tots Coordinator Conference held at The National Conference Center in Leesburg, Virginia, September 17^th-20^th. Nearly 500 Program Coordinators attended the event, during which they learned everything from handling donations and coordinating drop offs, to understanding how the IRS tax rules affect campaigns. Participants also had the opportunity to share their experiences and learn from each other.

As the Toys for Tots’ Program Coordinator for upstate New York over the past five years, Roman oversees the collection and distribution of thousands of donated toys across the entire region. For the 2014 holiday season, the Toys for Tots campaign delivered over 114,000 toys to children throughout upstate New York. It’s a huge undertaking, but Roman is proud to do it, and he takes much satisfaction in knowing that he is leading an effort that brings great joy to thousands of children.

Roman says, “Coming from a poor background, and being able to make a difference in a kids’ life is important because someone needs to show or tell these kids that no matter what situation they are currently going through, there will be a better tomorrow, and I’m living proof of it.”

Following Romans’ 16-year career in the U.S. Marine Corps, he began running the Toys-for-Tots program from the Marine Corps Reserve Center in Albany, N.Y. After the center closed down, Integra Optics CEO, Dave Prescott, suggested that Roman run the program out of Integra Optics’ headquarters in Latham, N.Y., and the company is now the home of Toys for Tots for the upstate New York region. This year’s Toys for Tots campaign will kick off in October.

About Integra Optics

Integra Optics is the nation’s fastest-growing fiber optics solutions provider and the #2 fastest-growing company in New York State’s Capital Region, according to the 2014 Inc. 5000 List of America’s Fastest Growing Companies. Integra Optics has earned national recognition for its industry standard optical transceivers that are compatible with virtually all network platforms. Its deep portfolio of high-performance optical equipment also includes passives, fiber jumpers, and testing equipment. Integra Optics was voted a 2015 Top Workplace in the Albany-based Times Union newspaper, and is also the home for Toys-for-Tots in the Capital Region. Check out their website at IntegraOptics.com.