The End of an Era at Evergreen Safety Council

An end to an era is soon approaching us here at Evergreen Safety Council. Tom Odegaard is retiring.

Tom became Evergreen’s Executive Director in September, 2003, replacing the previous Executive Director, Monty Lish, which were some big shoes to fill. Tom did a great job filling them.

During his nearly 15 year career with Evergreen he had several major accomplishments. His first, and probably biggest accomplishment, was that he could handle the crazies known as “the staff,” especially his ESC trainers.

Although the program existed before he came on board with ESC, Tom took our Pilot/Escort Vehicle Operator (P/EVO) course to new levels. Working with WSDOT, and meeting with industry leaders, Tom grew the course into a nationally recognized program, ensuring Evergreen Safety Council as the leader in that training.

Under Tom’s guidance, the P/EVO Course, along with the Flagger Certification Course, became endorsed by the American Association of Safety Councils in March of 2014–further cementing Evergreen Safety Council as a leader in quality safety training.

Tom played a major role in the development of a Washington State specific flagger training video, “Work Zone Safety Depends on You.”  He spearheaded the effort and partnered with the Northwest
Laborers-Employers Training Trust to receive a Labor & Industries (L&I) SHIP grant. This video has been placed on the L&I video site to help refresh and remind flaggers of the importance of their job and how to be safe.

He helped guide ESC through the economic downturn of 2008. In 2012 ESC had to start the process of finding a new home. Tom worked tirelessly looking at various buildings throughout the Puget Sound to find our current location. The new home provided three training rooms, a computer lab, and our own motorcycle range where training can occur seven days per week. He orchestrated the move so that we were able to keep business open and had very little disruption to our customers.

During his tenure he increased our presence in the community and continued to grow our training programs. Elected President of the American Association of Safety Councils (2010 - 2012), he is also a member of the Washington Governor’s Industrial, Safety & Health Board. Working with staff he helped bring the nationally recognized Certified Occupational Safety Specialist (COSS) program to ESC as well as developing a New Driver Training Program for both teen and adult drivers. Tom also got Evergreen approved as a Department of Licensing Testing Center for cars, motorcycles, and 3-wheel vehicles. Most recently he helped institute the Professional Safety Academy, a series of specialized safety courses that can be taken independently or as a series for certification as a Safety Specialist. He also helped procure a Susan Harwood grant for 2017-2018, with ESC being awarded a Targeted Topic Training Grant for “Construction Road Zones.”

Evergreen Safety Council, like many companies, has had a lot of up and downs over the years. Tom has stayed constant and steady. He has been a friend. He takes the time every day to talk to each of his staff members to see how we are doing. He allowed the staff to celebrate accomplishments both personal and professional, provided encouragement when we needed it, and showed compassion when we lost friends of the Council. While he will be missed by all of us at Evergreen Safety Council, he certainly deserves his retirement. His hard work and diligence have greatly benefited us. His contributions to our overall strategy and the daily operation of Evergreen with the guidance he has provided will be sorely missed.

Contributed by Eric Tofte, Director of Training and Consultation Evergreen Safety Council, and Tina Bacon, New Driver Training Programs Manager, Roadway & Traffic Programs Coordinator