• Posted: May 6, 2019
• Community Building

The electrical construction industry, like most industries, sees companies bidding and competing for work. But what many don’t see is that these same companies can just as easily ban together for important causes and charitable work.

Take for example Continental Electric and the group CEI. CEI was formed about a decade ago and is comprised of manufacturers, suppliers, reps, contractors, and other groups within the electrical industry all with a common goal: to raise money for cancer research.

“The idea is to bring complimentary and competing companies to work together, with a mission to benefit the community through outreach. We have been working with the American Cancer Society since our inception,” said CEI’s Executive Committee Chairman and Continental Electric employee, Rick Marder.

Currently CEI has 19 participating companies and is raising money and awareness for the American Cancer Society’s Patient Navigator Program. The program is designed to educate and assist patients as they move through the health care system. Often times when someone is diagnosed with cancer, they don’t know what treatments are available or what options they have. Patient Navigator allows them access to professional medical, legal, financial, or administrative experience.

“In our inaugural year we had 11 companies and wanted to raise $55,000,” Marder explained. “We wound up raising $165,000 that first year and in year two when we went from 11 companies to 24 companies, we raised $268,000.”

Through the eight years CEI has been around, the organization has raised $1.7 million for the American Cancer Society. Sometimes it takes a bit of bad news to begin years’ worth of good work.

In 2006 one of Marder’s daughters was diagnosed with cancer. Fourteen months of chemo later and Marder’s daughter was cancer free by August 2007. This unfortunate event sparked Marder to begin looking at ways to give back to help cancer patients and it led him to Steiner Electric where two other employees had children battling cancer.

From there CEI was born and the organization continues to bring together those within the electrical industry to give back to those who are less fortunate.

“We put all the competition aside to come together for these common causes to help the community,” Marder said. “We are just one example of it. It’s a great way for people to get to know each other across companies and the industry and a great way to give back.”