Apollo is privileged to have many long-term employees, including two from our sales team and one from Quality Control, who are celebrating work anniversaries this month, as well as a newbie.
For the past 21-years, Keith Kankovsky has faithfully and professionally served Apollo’s Dealers and end users.
Keith’s gregarious personality and MacGyver-like abilities have opened doors not only for long-term business relationships but also friendships. His relationship with Joel and Keersten Nichols, Co-Owners of Apollo Design®, goes back to their high school days.
“It’s been great having Keith on board all these years,” said Joel. “He contributes a lot from both a sales and technical perspective. He’s played many different roles here, and we look forward to his future contributions.”
A family man at heart, Keith enjoys spending time with his wife and daughters, participating in historical reenactments, blacksmithing, and various outdoor activities.
Brett Zellers, aka Dr. Gobo, completes his 18th year at Apollo as a Customer Service Representative. Brett readily shares his expertise with Apollo Dealers and end users, as well as trade show attendees. Over the years, Brett has worked in inside and outside sales for Apollo and Blue Pony, Apollo’s sister company.
“Brett’s been one of our lead CSRs for these many years and just does a wonderful job interacting with customers and knowing the products. He’s able to talk gobos, along with getting a good verbal jab in,” shared Joel.
Brett recently married his sweetheart, Mindi. We’re all wishing them decades of honeymoon-style happiness!
After his bride, family, and friends, Brett — a self-described sports fanatic — most loves IU basketball, Oakland Raiders, and New York Yankees, presumably in that order.
Lauding nine years at Apollo, Bonnie Rice serves as Quality and Incoming/Receiving Technician. Bonnie takes pride in her job, sharing, “I love doing quality-inspection. I have been a quality tech for over 20 years. It always makes me feel good to know I have been instrumental in a quality product going out to our customers.”
Bonnie’s enthusiasm for her work doesn’t stop with Apollo customers. She enjoys the people she works alongside – something that makes going to work a pleasure, even on a bitterly cold winter morning.
“Bonnie’s done a great job. She helps us in our QC area, especially. Very few gobos leave the factory without Bonnie having looked at them for color, consistency, product quality – things like that,” Joel shared. “She also helps us with checking material as it comes in. She’s an integral part of our QC process and does a beautiful job.”
Bonnie spends her free time attending auctions on the weekends. She delights in relaying her favorite purchases to her colleagues the next week. “My most prized auction find is a Grandfather Clock. I had wanted one all my life. We went to an estate auction, and there it was – the most beautiful clock I ever saw. I told my son it would probably go for 800.00 or more, but I was going to bid on it. I got it for $150!”
We can’t imagine that clock going to a better person than Bonnie. It was a well-deserved bargain.
Andrea Williamson observed her first-year anniversary with Apollo. As Content Marketing Coordinator for Apollo Design® and Product Specialist for Apollo DesignScapes®, her days include a variety of tasks welcomed throughout her career – sales, marketing, and writing.
Joel commented, “Andrea has ramped up quickly on getting to know Apollo and its sister companies. She helps us with marketing in so many different ways. As you’ve seen an email or blog, Andrea touches a lot of that stuff and has been a big help.”
Content Marketing gives her the added satisfaction of knowing that her high school teachers and university professors were misguided in (always) recommending that she expand the content of her papers. Her philosophy is to say what she means in as few words as possible. Now, she’s paid to do just that.
Perhaps more than anything else, Andrea has enjoyed the opportunity to write about herself in the third person.
We’re Here to Serve You
Apollo prides itself on employing great people to create the finest products and lighting solutions – including Custom Gobos – for awesome Dealers and end users.
No matter what title we hold, we’re here for you!
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