Every year Lancaster Painting donates labor and supplies to a family or nonprofit organization in need. They have done multiple projects for both the Stanislaus County Society for Handicapped Children and Adults and Westside Ministries.

This year, they launched a new community service program — Paint it Forward. Lancaster asked the public to nominate a family or organization to receive $5,000 in donated work. In December Lancaster project managers narrowed down the nominations to three and then all the employees were asked to vote on the project they felt most deserved this year’s donation. The winner — Turlock’s Community Continuum College, a day training center serving developmentally disabled adults.

“I feel it’s important for our company and for personal growth within our company,” Lancaster Painting owner Steve Talkington said. “It shows (our employees) a way they can make a difference.”

Talkington said the community service projects also promote teambuilding, something he credits for the low employee turnover. Most of his crew members have worked at Lancaster for close to 10 years or more. He joked that the “new guy” has now been there for five years.