Year in Review: Los Angeles refinery honored for significant community investment

Community News

Los Angeles, California, foundation
(L to R) Chris Green, LAR Technical Services Manager; Olga Chavez, Sr CSR & Community Relations; CP Patsatzis, VP Refining’ Damaris Zuluaga, Wilmington Chamber Board member’ Luis Martinez, Environmental, Safety & Security Manager; Sergio Carrillo, Special Projects Rep, Office of Councilmember Tim McOsker

Employees and contractors from Marathon Petroleum’s refinery in Los Angeles make it a priority to make a positive impact in the community through volunteer activities and financial donations. More than a few spend a significant amount of their off-hours giving to their favorite charitable organizations.

In 2023, their collective efforts didn’t go unnoticed as they, along with the refinery, were recognized and honored by multiple communities and organizations throughout the year.

“We take our role in the communities we operate in very seriously, both through our energy work that enables modern life as we know it and through our charitable investments and volunteerism aimed at helping our shared community thrive,” said CP Patsatzis, Vice President of Refining. “We greatly appreciate when our commitment to making people’s lives better is recognized.”

Here’s a recap of the recognitions from 2023:

(L to R) Councilmember Tim McOsker; Myla Rahman, Policy Advisor Office of State Senator Steven Bradford; MPC Vice President of Refining CP Patsatzis; Mark Fuentes, Field Rep, Office of Assemblymember Mike Gipson; Jennifer LaMarque, Field Deputy, Office of Supervisor Janice Hahn
Vice President of Refining CP Patsatzis accepted the award from Bruce Heyman, San Pedro Chamber board chair.

Business Development Award – Wilmington Chamber of Commerce

At its annual awards celebration in the spring, the Wilmington Chamber of Commerce awarded the Los Angeles refinery with its 2023 Business Development Award for its strong sense of community, engagement and continued support to a multitude of community organizations and local nonprofits.

Company of the Year Award – Wilmington Chamber of Commerce

The Wilmington Chamber of Commerce also presented the refinery with its Company of the Year Award in June. The award recognizes a company that has demonstrated a history of significant business and community engagement, and operates with integrity, having demonstrated best business practices, business expansion, and future planning. The refinery takes part in numerous events throughout the year, from annual events like its charity golf tournament, summer youth internship program and Thanksgiving Feast, while also adopting local schools.

Business of the Year Award – San Pedro Chamber of Commerce

Also in June, the San Pedro Chamber of Commerce presented refinery leadership with its 2023 Business of the Year Award at its annual Business Awards & Installation Luncheon.

 

(L to R) Dr. Luis Dorado, LA Harbor College President; Bren Malone; David Malone, LAR HR Manager, Cindy Bohnert; Eric Bohnert, LAR Products Control Manager; David Gascon, LA Harbor College Foundation Chair, at the LA Harbor College Foundation Award Ceremony

Corporate Partner of the Year Award – Los Angeles Harbor College Foundation

For a second year in a row, the Los Angeles Harbor College Foundation honored the refinery as its Corporate Partner of the Year in 2023. The Foundation’s Board Chair Dave Gascon cited Marathon’s   exceptional partnership and support of the community college.

(Back row, L to R): Maribel Alejandre, Wilmington resident; Jennifer N. Winter Joiner, Program Director, US Vets; Yanira Losoya, Development & Communications Manager, US Vets; Luis Martinez, Environmental, Safety & Security Manager; Chad Mayer, Executive Director, Sharefest; David Malone, HR Manager; Bruce Heyman, Executive Director, LAMI;  Olga Chavez, Sr CSR & Community Relations; Evelyn Hernandez, Wilmington Community Clinic; Jacqueline Garcia, Wilmington Rep., Office of Councilmember Tim McOsker; Erica Blyther, Environmental Affairs Officer, City of Los Angeles; Lucia Moreno-Linares, Wilmington resident; Juanita Naranjo, Carson resident

(Front row, L to R): Kari Cho, Director of Grants & Marketing, Boys & Girls Clubs of Long Beach; Nital Patel, District Director, Office of State Senator Steven Bradford; Mary Simmons, Long Beach resident

Corporate Partner of the Year Award – Los Angeles Maritime Institute

At its 30th anniversary fundraising event last year, the Los Angeles Maritime Institute (LAMI) presented Marathon with its Corporate Partner of the Year Award for 2023.

LAMI’s leadership thanked the Los Angeles refinery for helping to fund and support its programs like Marathon Petroleum Explore the Coast, Let Kids be Kids Summer Camp, and its longstanding core program STEM Still Vital.

Constellation Award – AltaSea

Marathon’s support of AltaSea, a public-private ocean institute that brings together the best and brightest in exploration, science, business and education, earned the company the honor of having a constellation named after it in 2023. The “Marathon Foundation Constellation” is now part of the institute’s Energy for our Future – Solar Stars program. The program was launched in 2022 to help fund construction of its campus at the Port of Los Angeles and the expansion of its workforce development program Ocean Pathways.

(L to R) Manuel Jimenez, President/CEO Black Knight Patrol; CP Patsatzis, Vice President Refining at the Los Angeles refinery; Olga Chavez, Sr CSR & Community Relations; Karen Bass, Mayor of Los Angeles; Victor Ibarra, Los Angeles refinery Government Affairs Manager
Ibarra and Chavez ride in the Heart of the Harbor Holiday Parade

Business Grand Marshal – Heart of the Harbor Holiday Parade in Wilmington

To end the year, Marathon was featured as the Business Grand Marshal at the Heart of the Harbor Holiday Parade in Wilmington, which is organized by the Wilmington Chamber of Commerce. The recognition is a testament to the company’s significant community investment and engagement throughout the year.