COLCHESTER, Conn. – Laid up with a broken leg, Christine St. Onge’s thoughts turned to better times, when she could unburden some of the load on her husband.

But Christine’s husband was 6,000 miles away.

In 2009, CM1 Scott St. Onge, a U.S. Navy Seabee, was sent to Iraq. That’s the year Christine fell and broke her leg. In 2010, shortly after Scott was redeployed to Afghanistan, Christine underwent knee surgery and began a painful recovery.

That’s a lot for anyone to go through alone, but Christine had the support of associates at S&S Worldwide, where she works in the Contact Center. Like the crutches she relied on to get around, her work friends propped her up during a difficult time. In turn, St. Onge nominated the company for the Patriotic Employer Award from the Connecticut Committee for Employer Support of the National Guard and Reserve (ESGR).

“During [Scott’s] deployment, they have been helpful in making my work day as stress free as possible…” St. Onge wrote in her nominating letter. “My supervisor Carole Dukette would go grocery shopping for me on more than one occasion. When I got back to work, she and my manager Jenneke Timmermans made sure I was as comfortable as possible.”

St. Onge also credited CEO Stephen Schwartz and Co-Presidents Adam and Hy Schwartz for their compassion.

“They would call to check in on me and made sure if I needed anything they would supply it for me, no questions asked and no request in return,” she wrote.

Adam Schwartz said they wouldn’t have it any other way.

“Christine is part of our S&S family,” he said. “We’re extremely proud of Scott’s faithful service and defense of our country, so it’s only appropriate that we show our appreciation by supporting his wife during his deployments.”

The award recognizes S&S as a Patriotic Employer for “contributing to national security and protecting liberty and freedom by supporting employee participation in America’s National Guard and Reserve Force.” It was presented to the Schwartz family by Thomas Pandolfi, MOB/DEMOB coordinator for Connecticut’s ESGR.

“Companies like S&S have gone above and beyond in making its employees feel less stress, which accompanies the deployment of a spouse. S&S can be proud of its supportive patriotic duty,” Pandolfi said.

This isn’t the first time S&S has been recognized for supporting its citizen soldiers. In 2004, the company received the Patriotic Employer Award after being nominated by another Contact Center associate, Michelle Bergeron. Bergeron was stationed in Iraq with the Army National Guard from February 2003 to July 2004.

# # #

The S&S Worldwide family, with over 100 years of experience, continues to delight customers by delivering fun, hands-on learning products for the young and the young at heart. The company provides arts and crafts, games and activities, sporting goods and therapy products to recreation, health care and education professionals.

S&S is headquartered in Colchester, Connecticut, has been in business since 1906 and currently employs approximately 300 employees.