VERC Enterprises Honored by Non-Profit Group

DUXBURY and FITCHBURG, Mass. -- VERC Enterprises has been named Employer of the Year by Westwinds Clubhouse. The clubhouse is one of 32 members of the Massachusetts Clubhouse Coalition, a non-profit group dedicated to assisting individuals with long-term mental illness find secure employment, housing, education, services and support in the community.

"VERC Enterprises was selected for this honor based on its general reputation for employing those with mental illness and specifically for the support and confidence they have demonstrated to one of our members, who is employed at their Fitchburg location," said Marcia Aucoin, director of Westwinds Clubhouse. VERC employs a Westwinds Clubhouse member named Ryan at its On the Run Mobil store in Fitchburg.

VERC President and CEO Leo Vercollone and Vice President Paul Vercollone have been invited to attend an April 10th awards ceremony at the State House in Boston. Employers of the Year from various coalition clubhouses will receive their awards at the event. State Senator Jennifer Flanagan and other Massachusetts legislators are scheduled to attend, as is Marcia Fowler, commissioner of the Department of Mental Health.

This isn't the first time VERC has been similarly honored. In 2010, the Arc of Massachutts awarded Leo and Paul Vercollone with Distinguished Citizen Awards for employing individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The company also received a 2011 "Top Places to Work" award from the Boston Globe, and both a "Best Place to Work in Massachusetts" and a "Leader in Diversity" award from the Boston Business Journal.

"It is a privilege to be named a recipient of the Employer of the Year Award from such a respected human services coalition," said Leo Vercollone. "We are proud of our commitment to employ those in our communities with developmental challenges; it is a commitment we plan on honoring for many years to come."

VERC Enterprises operates 24 Mobil and Gulf gas stations and convenience stores in Massachusetts and New Hampshire.