The Ramirez family, including Husco International chief executive officer Austin Ramirez and chairman Gus Ramirez, which has supported numerous educational initiatives both internationally and in the Milwaukee area, including the creation of St. Augustine Preparatory Academy in Milwaukee, will be honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 7th annual BizTimes Media Nonprofit Excellence Awards program.
This year the Nonprofit Excellence Awards program will be held virtually from 7-9:30 a.m. on Friday, Nov. 6.
The Ramirez family committed to investing about $60 million into St. Augustine Preparatory Academy, a K4-12 non-denominational Christian school that is in the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program, which opened in 2017 at 2607 S. 5th St. on Milwaukee’s south side.
In addition, Gus and his wife, Becky Ramirez, have spent years contributing to the development of Christian schools in Central America, including Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador and Nicaragua.
The family business, Waukesha-based Husco, made $9.5 million in donations in 2018 to 100 charitable organizations, including $4.3 million to St. Augustine Preparatory Academy and more than $170,000 in matching funds alongside employee contributions to the United Way, disaster relief and 19 other nonprofit agencies. The company also provides about 100 scholarships for Milwaukee area students and children of employees.
Austin Ramirez is serving as the 2020 campaign co-chair for the United Way of Greater Milwaukee & Waukesha County. He is also the co-chair of the City Forward Collective, an effort to ensure every child in Milwaukee has access to a great school.
The finalists for the other Nonprofit Excellence Awards categories are (winners will be announced at the Nov. 6 event):
Corporate Citizen of the Year:
- Belman Homes
- CG Schmidt
- Kohl’s
- The Lueder Financial Group
Corporate Volunteer of the Year:
- Dan Davis
- Jennifer Ott
Nonprofit Collaboration of the Year:
- Sixteenth Street Community Health Partners, American Cancer Society and Kohl’s Healthy Families program
- Next Step Clinic
- The Kellogg PEAK Initiative
Nonprofit Executive of the Year:
- Laurie Winters, Museum of Wisconsin Art
- Maureen Atwell, Hebron Housing Services
- Tom Schneider, COA Youth & Family Centers
Large Nonprofit (Organization) of the Year:
- Easterseals Southeast Wisconsin
- Harry & Rose Samson Family Jewish Community Center
- Milwaukee Center for Independence
Small Nonprofit (Organization) of the Year:
- Artists Working in Education
- Florentine Opera
- Riverwest Food Pantry
Social Enterprise
- Mission Fuel
Click here to register for the Nonprofit Excellence Awards program, which is sponsored by Wegner CPAs.
