Good Scout Awards to Honor Two Community Leaders

BizTUCSONMarch 29, 2024

3 minutes read

Boy Scouts of America’s Catalina Council is honoring Simpleview CEO Ryan George and Climatec Operations/Service Manager Mike Goodwin at the 25th annual Good Scout Awards Luncheon.

KOLD News Anchor Dan Marries will attend as the event’s Master of Ceremonies at the Tucson Convention Center on April 12. Pioneer Title Agency and Alliance Bank of Arizona are sponsoring the council’s largest fundraising event.

George, 49, will be presented the Distinguished Citizen Award. The Tucson native is also a recipient of Amphi Foundation’s 2023 Distinguished Alumni Award. But his greatest accomplishment, he said, is raising his three children with his wife, Kim.

From a young age, Scouting was part of George’s everyday life. His 13-year journey began as a Tiger Cub up until he earned his Eagle rank in 1993. For his Eagle project, he collected thousands of pounds of food, coordinating with local supermarkets to run a multi-week food drive. His two younger brothers were also Scouts, and his parents actively volunteered as Den Mother and Scoutmaster for the Catalina Council, helping and mentoring thousands of Southern Arizona youth.

“The leadership skills I learned through Scouting were extremely formative,” George said. “I think the Scout Oath and Scout Law are great principles to live by and if only everybody did, the world would just be a better place. If you can check all those boxes…trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous… then you’re probably doing good as a human being.”

In 1997, George graduated from the University of Arizona’s Eller College of Management with a double major in accounting and MIS. Four years later, he founded Simpleview –a leading provider of technology sales and marketing solutions for Destination Management Organizations – with three other partners. Under his leadership, Simpleview has grown to employ over 500 people and serves clients in over 1,000 cities worldwide. Simpleview is a major financial contributor to various nonprofit organizations in Southern Arizona including Ben’s Bells, Boys & Girls Club, and Habitat for Humanity.

“If you want the world to be a better place, there are few places where your dollars go further than the Catalina Council,” said George. “More importantly, it’s an investment in our youth, which is an investment in our future and therefore an investment in making the world a better place.”

Goodwin, 54, started his Scouting journey from a Cub to a Scout, earning his life badge. His mother was a Den Mother and his father was an outdoorsman. Goodwin said Scouting had a positive influence on his life.

“Scouting is relevant and has a great place in our future,” he explained. “Teaching kids to be interactive and work toward a common goal, whether going on a hike or earning a merit badge, is an important life lesson that still needs to be learned.”

Goodwin moved to Tucson in 2012 with his wife and three children. His role as operations/service manager at Climatec – an energy services, building automation, and security and life safety company – is just one of his active contributions to the community and construction industry. Goodwin’s passion for workforce development and the trade careers led him to coach and mentor southern Arizona youth.

As government chairman of the Arizona Builders Alliance, Goodwin met with legislators in the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate on behalf of Arizona to discuss a long-term plan for the construction industry to ensure an economically prosperous and great place to live. He is an active member of six organizations, including Pima JTED Advisory Board and the Pima Community College Construction Advisory Board.

“Recognizing people that step up and make a difference hopefully will continue to get others involved and engaged to make a difference in their community–that type of thing is contagious,” said Goodwin. “You don’t have to go into a lot of debt to have a great career whether you work as a plumber, electrician, or in the control industry.”

25th Annual Good Scout Awards Luncheon