Publix Honors 12 Employees With Company’s Most Prestigious Award

Publix Super Markets bestowed 2020 and 2021 founder’s awards on a dozen employees who exemplify leadership, perpetuate the company culture and demonstrate a commitment to its vision.

The 2020 recipients of the George W. Jenkins award, named after Publix’s founder, include:

• Tim Bismarck, store manager in Sevierville, Tenn.
• Don Bridwell Sr., store manager in North Myrtle Beach, S.C.
• Tom Stelzer, store manager in Lake Mary, Fla.
• Mackenzie Mast, district manager and previous store manager in Sarasota, Fla.
• Brian Aten, store manager in Miami, Fla.
• Bill Pelham, warehouse operations manager in Lakeland, Fla.

Winners for 2021 are:

• Janella Long, store manager in Vestavia Hills, Ala.
• Mike Skehan, district manager and previous store manager in Lexington, S.C.
• Kerri Tubbs, store manager in Orlando, Fla.
• David Sutton, store manager in Plant City, Fla.
• James Saul, district manager and previous store manager in Boca Raton, Fla.
• Terry Walden, director of IT application delivery

This is the company’s most prestigious award, according to information from Publix. “We’re proud to celebrate this extraordinary group of associates,” declared CEO Todd Jones. “Their accomplishments and contributions to our company continue to perpetuate our Publix culture and carry on Mr. George’s legacy.”

The awards for 2020 and 2021 were given out at a dinner event this week.

Privately owned and operated by its more than 225,000 employees, Lakeland, Fla.-based Publix has 1,285 stores in Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee, South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia. The grocer is No. 11 on The PG 100, Progressive Grocer’s 2021 list of the top food and consumables retailers in North America.