Site Manager Karla Garza is the 2025 Core Value Excellence Award winner.
Earlier in February, our executive leadership team visited our Garden City, Kansas facility with a very special purpose—to surprise Site Manager Karla Garza with the 2025 Core Value Excellence Award.
Out of 10,000 Fortrex employees across the organization, only one individual each year receives this honor. Established five years ago in memory of Executive Vice President Amy Lowe, this award recognizes someone who truly embodies our core values: Protect What Matters, Win as a Team, Deliver on our Promises, and Advance a Safer Future. Leadership wanted to celebrate this achievement where it matters most—with Karla’s team of 150+ employees who witness her dedication every single day.
Karla has been with Fortrex for 12 years and leads with dedication, consistently offering support to her colleagues while maintaining an unwavering commitment to excellence. As Area Manager Mitchell Kinast shared, “She cares so much about people… talking to every employee, asking them about their personal lives.” Here are a few ways she embodies each core value.
Protect What Matters: Karla shows up every day as the first person at the plant and the last to leave. She ensures Lock Out Tag Out (LOTO) boards are used nightly by all employees and leads safety-focused pre-shift meetings. Under her leadership, the site achieved one full year accident-free with an OSHA rate of 0.65 out of 307,000 man hours.
Win as a Team: With an open-door policy, Karla builds personal connections with every team member. She knows each of her 150+ employees by name and their role in the plant. As Assistant Site Manager Jackelynne Rincan noted, “She’s a great leader. Anything we need… she’s quick to solve the problems.”
Deliver on our Promises: Karla maintains excellent relationships with both the Fortrex team and our customer through daily presence with FSQA and consistent communication. Her documentation is always current, and she proactively seeks technical assistance when needed.
Advance a Safer Future: Beyond safety metrics, Karla has won all three Food Safety Hero Awards and Site Manager of the Year. She balances professional excellence with being present for her three children, proving that advancing a safer future extends to all aspects of life.
When presented with the award, Karla humbly shared, “This recognition is not just for me, it’s for all my colleagues. Without them it wouldn’t be possible.” Her response perfectly captures the team-first mentality that makes her so deserving of this honor.
As SVP of Operations Jake Watts noted during the presentation, “There’s no one more deserving in this organization of our 10,000 employees than this one individual.”
Congratulations to Karla on receiving the Core Value Excellence Award for 2025. Her dedication inspires us all, reaffirming Fortrex’s commitment to building a culture guided by the principles that define us. Thank you for living our core values every day and applying those in and outside the workplace.
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