-Photo by CONOR CHRISTOFFERSON

Thorne Research CEO Al Czap smiles as he watches the gas meter rise on one of the 140 free tanks of fuel he gave to his employees as a thank-you gift.

Thorne workers give ‘tanks’ for boss’s gift

By CONOR CHRISTOFFERSON

Staff writer

SANDPOINT — An often-quoted business adage holds there’s no such thing as a free lunch, but apparently the same cannot be said about free gasoline.

At least according to Al Czap, CEO of nutritional supplement business Thorne Research, who spent Thursday filling up tanks for 140 of his employees.

The idea for the “thank you-gift,” as Czap called it, came to him as he thought about the daily commute that many of his employees make to his Dover-based company. Some come from as far as Montana.

“Gas prices keep going up and up, and right now we’re in a situation where we have some people here that work a whole day just to fill up their gas tank,” said Thorne general manager Steve Clark, who joined Czap in pumping gas for the grateful workers.

The estimated $10,000 to $15,000 price tag for the gift came directly from the pockets of Czap and his wife, Kelly, who co-owns the business.

For a man spending thousands of dollars on fuel, Czap appeared to be enjoying his day as a part-time gas attendant, smiling throughout and boasting to his co-workers about the 35 gallons of diesel he pumped into one employee’s truck.

Shipping supervisor Greg St. John also helped out on pumping duties, and, when asked what he thought about Czap’s generosity, smiled and said, “Are you kidding me? It’s awesome.”

The event, which took place at Sandpoint’s Coleman fuel, was such a success that Czap is already planning two more giveaways for later in the summer.

“We’re just trying to help our employees cope with the high price of gas. It’s getting so ridiculous, and we’re just trying to give them a little something back,” Clark said.

Czap said employee reaction was 100 percent enthusiastic, even for those who couldn’t make it to the pump. One distraught worker e-mailed Czap to say she had to take her child to Coeur d’Alene for a doctor’s appointment and worried that she would miss out on the gift.

“I just told her to fill up down there and bring me a receipt and I’d reimburse her,” Czap said.