Celebrating Founder’s Day Company Wide

Despite the different look of the day, our associates have remained committed to our annual Founder's Day recognition.

Recognizing Our History & Core Values

Founder's Day at Opus – April 22 – marks the date back in 1953 when our founder, Gerry Rauenhorst, signed his first contract. This defining moment was the start of the construction company that ultimately grew into The Opus Group that we know today.⁠

At the age of just 25, and with the entire $354 that he and his wife Hanky had in their savings account plus a loan from his brother, Gerry secured a bid proposal to ultimately earn a contract to build Zion Lutheran Church in Olivia, Minnesota. The principles that Gerry ingrained in his very first projects went on to inspire the
core values that Team Opus upholds today – safety, integrity, respect, innovation, entrepreneurship, and stewardship.⁠

Gerry saw his business venture as a way to not only improve an industry and support his family, but also a means to improve and support his community. His commitment to community philanthropy became a priority and tradition engrained in our organization.

A Fitting 2022 Celebration

The impact of COVID has changed the way we've celebrated the last couple of years. This year we took a flexible approach – each office was able to choose their own volunteer day. Not only did this flexibility allow us to manage the impact of COVID, it also allowed teams to plan around their workloads and the weather in their area to pick a date that would work for their team.

Take a look at Founder's Day volunteering this year:

Kansas City
St. Louis
Minneapolis
Chicago
Phoenix
Des Moines
Denver
Indianapolis

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In support of these volunteer efforts, the Opus Foundation awarded $105,000 in grants to the following organizations:

• Greater Des Moines Habitat for Humanity
• Habitat for Humanity Metro Denver
• Habitat for Humanity of Central Arizona
• Habitat for Humanity of Kansas City
• Habitat for Humanity Saint Louis
• Rebuilding Together Metro Chicago
• Rebuilding Together Minnesota
• Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity ⁠

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The Opus Foundation, the corporate foundation for Opus, is building community for a better tomorrow by supporting projects and programs that make our communities better places to live, work and raise families. The Foundation is committed to improving conditions that disproportionately affect historically underinvested individuals and communities by focusing on early childhood education, youth development, workforce development and community revitalization. Read more about the Foundation's work. The Opus Foundation is a separate entity from The Opus Group and is led by its own Board of Directors.