Mar/Apr 2019
BIG G’S 10-YEAR ESOP ANNIVERSARY
story of a beneficiary who received her spouse’s ESOP distribution in a lump sum at the end of 2018.
Big G Express is celebrating its tenth year of being 100 percent employee owned in 2019 and will be celebrating 25 years in business in 2020. These milestones are a testament to the stability and success of our growing company! We will celebrate our 10-Year Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) Anniversary and announce the 2018 stock price at our Annual ESOP Meeting this summer in combination with our family event at the Nashville Zoo on July 13. Our stock price started at $5.88 a share in 2009 and was up to $44.76 at the end of 2017. We are excited to see the 2018 results and, more importantly, the employee shareholder ESOP balances!
We lost Steve Booker, a dear friend and dedicated driver for Big G, in November of 2017. Mr. Booker’s wife and beneficiary, Paula, received his ESOP distribution at the end of 2018 (in a lump sum). She called in with tears of joy and relief when she received the distribution form and realized she would be getting over $68,000. After years of treatments, lost time at work, and medical bills piling high, Paula struggled to stay ahead with one income this past year. The ESOP distribution allowed her to pay the four mortgage payments she was behind on and replace her damaged roof with a metal one. We introduced her to our financial advisor, Melissa Chipman, who helped Paula set up an IRA account for her future retirement. Ms. Paula now has money in savings for emergencies and is taking a cruise this spring with her daughter and a friend. Paula and Steve would have celebrated their 30-year wedding anniversary last year and had planned to take a cruise together. He made her promise she would do something for herself with the ESOP money after she took care of necessities and put money aside for her retirement. Paula says the ESOP was a true blessing and believes that God used the ESOP to bless her and her family. She is thankful for the lessons she has learned in this process and happy to share their experience with others to help them prepare for their future and retirement. The ESOP provides an opportunity for Big G Employees to save for their retirement without any money out of their pocket (or paycheck). Employees earn shares each year based on their compensation and years of service. We look forward to the future of our ESOP and seeing the difference it makes in the lives of our dedicated employees and their families!
Distributions paid to employees who have retired or separated from Big G through December 31, 2017 are over $3.5 Million combined!
ESOP distributions have grown over the years as employees have stayed with the plan longer and our stock prices have increased. We’ve had some significant ESOP balances being distributed at retirements – some over $100,000. We have shared a few stories of retired drivers who received their ESOP distributions, and we would like to share a
STEVE AND PAULA BOOKER
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855-698-7130
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