In this episode of Servant Leader’s Library, Nicholas Paulukow sits down with Mike DeBerdine, CEO of Rhoads Energy, to explore what it takes to sustain a 108-year-old, employee-owned company built on integrity and service. Mike shares lessons in leadership, legacy, and the power of doing the right thing—even when it’s hard. From family values to fostering ownership through an ESOP, this conversation fuels inspiration for leaders at every level.
Nicholas Paulukow
All right, welcome back to the Servant Leader’s Library, the only podcast where we blend business, brains, servant hearts, and just enough IT talk to make your firewall blush. I’m your host, Nicholas Paulukow, CEO of ONE 2 ONE — your friendly neighborhood managed IT and cyber firm — here to prove that leadership doesn’t come with a manual, just a mission. So today, I’m fired up.
We have — literally, because we’re talking about all things energy — a lot of energy in the room. My guest is Mike DeBerdine, President and CEO of Rhoads Energy, a 108-year-old powerhouse that’s been keeping southeastern Pennsylvania warm, cool, and fueled long before Wi-Fi was even a thing. We’ll talk legacy, leadership, and what it’s like to run an employee-owned company that’s been thriving for over a century. Wow.
And maybe we’ll even find out how Mike keeps the spark alive, both in his people and in his fuel tanks. So grab your coffee, turn up the thermostat — because Mike will love that — and get ready to plug into a conversation that proves servant leadership isn’t just about giving, it’s about igniting others. Mike, thanks for joining us today. We really appreciate you being here.
We help leadership teams build more resilient IT foundations. Curious what that looks like?
Mike DeBerdine
Thank you for the invite, Nick. I greatly appreciate it. Was looking forward to this morning.
Nicholas Paulukow
Yeah, absolutely. Thank you. Yeah, we’re up early today.
Yeah, we are. Well, 108 years. Yeah, sure. Wow.
Mike DeBerdine
I look pretty good, huh?
Nicholas Paulukow
You do look great. I mean, you’re doing well. So we’re going to have to do another episode on physical fitness, right?
Mike DeBerdine
Yeah.
Nicholas Paulukow
So for those that don’t know Rhoads, describe where Rhoads has come from and how you’re part of it.
Mike DeBerdine
Okay, so it started 108 years ago in Quarryville by Mr. Rhoads — Jerome Rhoads himself — who I actually knew. He passed in the 1970s but left the family farm and started selling kerosene out of a rail car.
That was the advent of petroleum energy. Coal was going out, and petroleum energy was coming into vogue. The business evolved through diversification — motor fuels, tire recapping, even a restaurant.
I was a controller at the time when we closed the restaurant in the 1990s. The newspaper interviewed me, and I said, “A bunch of oil guys shouldn’t be flipping burgers.” So we decided it was best to get out of something that wasn’t doing well in a lot of ways. But it was a passion of Mr. Rhoads — his wife loved to cook. They never had any children, so he bought her a restaurant so she could cook.
The company then evolved and was ultimately run by seven families after Mr. and Mrs. Rhoads passed. That was his succession plan. He passed the company on to them — gave it to those families. Ours was one of the seven — all nieces, nephews, and a sister and brother-in-law.
After that, the stock got moved around. Everyone kept gifting it to each other through their estates, and our family eventually got the majority of voting shares in the late ’70s or early ’80s.
I started there in 1989 as an assistant controller. Eventually, we bought out the rest of the shareholders, so now we’re primarily owned by our family — but we are 24.5% ESOP.
Nicholas Paulukow
Wow. Tell us a little bit about that. When did you decide to do that, and why was it important to you?
Mike DeBerdine
So — plug for Vistage, which Nick and I are both involved in. It’s a peer CEO group, which I love. Especially in a small business, you get a lot of accountability that you may not get at work because you’re usually making the final call. When you have peer CEOs who are really smart people, they push you and hold you accountable.
We’ve been an ESOP now for four years — it’ll be four years at the end of this month. It was about three years in the investigation stage, so about eight years ago we had a speaker at Vistage who really inspired me.
The model that Mr. Rhoads incorporated back in 1959, when he transferred stock to these late-20s and early-30s-year-olds — my parents included — really stuck with me. My mom was 28, my dad 30. He wanted to keep his legacy going. There was no ESOP back then. He had made his money — owned five farms at the time — and didn’t need a payout. He just wanted his legacy to continue.
That model of transferring the business to the next generation, keeping assets closely held, and rewarding the people who make things happen really resonated with me when I learned more about ESOPs.
I’ve been there now 36 years, and we’ve tried to be good stewards of the gift we were given. We keep reinvesting our resources back into the business. Now I’m 61 — what’s my exit strategy? I can’t take a delivery truck to the beach.
When you build a business, you reinvest profits to grow. We’ve done 23 acquisitions, so there’s always money going back in. At the same time, like in your business, Nick, hiring great talent takes work. You need something that stands out, and we think employee ownership is a unique carrot to recruit and retain people.
It was a multi-pronged decision. All three of my children are involved in the business — two full time, one part time in Charlotte doing social media. I wanted to give them a crack at growing the business themselves. They’re invested, they understand they have to earn it, and they’ve all done the right things before coming to Rhoads. They asked to come back, and it’s worked out well.
Nicholas Paulukow
And when your father took over the business, was it always planned for you to come in and take on the next generation?
Mike DeBerdine
Oh no, not at all. My dad started there as a bookkeeper in 1955. In just four years, he became one of the owners when Mr. Rhoads transferred the stock.
When I graduated from Franklin and Marshall College, my aspiration was always to own a health club. All through high school and college, that was my dream. I even did an independent study my senior year — second semester — got a B-plus on a hundred-page report. On paper, it was guaranteed success. You think you know everything when you’re in college because you’re book smart, even if you lack firsthand experience.
A partner and I — both from southern Lancaster County — did market research and built what we thought was the perfect model. We were convinced it would work. This goes back to 1987 when I graduated, and we’d already been working on it since ’86.
There wasn’t a single health club south of Lancaster to the Maryland line back then. Tens of thousands of people, and not one gym. I could’ve opened a garage door, thrown in some dumbbells, and been a millionaire.
Instead, we thought we had to go to the brand-new Town’s Edge Mall in Quarryville — state of the art when it opened in 1989. Nothing south of Lancaster past Kennett Square was that developed. So we went in there with a beautiful facility — 1,500 square feet, an aerobics room, free weights, Nautilus equipment — top of the line.
Within three months, we were maxed out and had no room to grow. Seriously. We grew ourselves right out of business. It was a train wreck.
My partner and I hung in there. Around the same time, another guy at the mall — a vice president from Anderson Bakery — opened a sporting goods store. The trash started piling up outside, and we went to the mall owners and asked what they were going to do about it. They hadn’t thought about it, so we offered to handle it — and started a parking lot sweeping business.
Fast forward: my partner, who had a young family, was out in 30 days. So I ran the health club during the day and the sweeping business at night. I’d go home, grab a snack, maybe nap an hour, then start once the mall was empty. We’d blow the sidewalks, empty trash, and use a sweeping machine. Eventually, we had 23 malls across York, Lancaster, and Chester Counties.
Sometimes I’d fall asleep at two in the morning in Columbia, engine running, just to get a nap — the money from sweeping kept the health club alive.
My partner had a video rental business on the side…
Nicholas Paulukow
Kind of rewind.
Mike DeBerdine
Yeah — because, you know, “be kind and rewind.” He had that right.
He would work during the day and then come over in the evenings to help out. I was more of the instructor, and the place was always packed. The windows would fog up within the first hour every night — you couldn’t see out. We were going broke buying five-gallon jugs of water from the delivery company.
We made a lot of mistakes. We nailed the need, but we destroyed it by not understanding the market — the space, the structure, all of it. Just because you work out in a gym doesn’t mean you can run a gym.
So, massive failure there. Within two years, I met with the bank and said, “Tell me what I need to get out. I can’t keep doing this.” I didn’t want to burn a bridge, so I wrote the check, closed that chapter, and kept the sweeping business.
Not long after that, my dad and I were standing in his kitchen. He asked, “So, what are you going to do now?” I said, “Well, I’m making decent money with the sweeping business. I’ve got my days free, I’m working nights, and I think I can make this really successful.”
He said, “Well, we have an assistant controller position open at the office. If you want to come in, you’ve got to stay for five years because the controller is going to retire in three. You’ll learn the job.”
I said, “Yeah, okay, I’ll do that.” That was the job interview — right there at the kitchen table. Then we had a beer and talked. A few days later, I showed up for work. I opened my first paycheck and thought, “Oh, okay, cool — twenty thousand a year.” And that’s how it started.
Nicholas Paulukow
Wait — did you keep the sweeping business?
Mike DeBerdine
I did. I kept doing it for about two or three more years while I was at Rhoads. I was the assistant controller and then the controller, and I hired someone to help me. But it became too much.
As my wife Deb says, that business paid for our wedding and the down payment on our house. It was good — hard work, but worth it.
Nicholas Paulukow
It was great.
Mike DeBerdine
I was really glad I did it. The gym had always been an aspiration — I loved it. I grew up as a gym rat, playing sports, and it was something I always wanted to try. But yeah — it was just too successful for its own good.
Nicholas Paulukow
And that explains why you went on to do refereeing and everything, right?
Mike DeBerdine
For sure. When I graduated from F&M, I played football there, and after I graduated, I missed the game. So I ended up coaching at Solanco for three seasons.
That third season was when I started as assistant controller at Rhoads. But when you’re the new guy in a business, especially in Lancaster City, you can’t be leaving at 2:30 every day — it looks bad. You might be the first one in at 6 a.m., but no one sees that. It’s fair.
So when that season ended, I wrapped up my coaching. A friend reached out and said, “Hey, if you want to stay around sports, why don’t you consider officiating?” That’s how I got into football officiating.
Nicholas Paulukow
That’s awesome. It sounds like your ability to coach also translates into business leadership. It seems like there have been a lot of strong leaders in your family’s business. What have you learned from them? Now that it’s employee-owned, what does servant leadership mean to you?
Mike DeBerdine
So, I had the good fortune to know Mr. Rhoads. We were probably the closest thing he had to grandchildren. We’d go over on Christmas mornings with my parents.
I didn’t mention earlier — my grandfather got involved with the business early on, around the 1920s. My dad joined in 1955. My grandfather was an orphan, and he met Mr. Rhoads somewhere in Chester County. Mr. Rhoads brought him on as his gofer — “go for this, go for that.” He didn’t have much formal education; my mom estimated he had about a third-grade education.
Back then, if you were an orphan, you worked in the fields when the ground wasn’t frozen, and went to school only in the winter. That was his life.
Mr. Rhoads treated my grandfather like a son — didn’t give him money, but gave him opportunity. My grandfather cooked, waited tables, pumped gas at the full-service station, and did tire recapping.
If you look through Lancaster archives, you’ll even find that my grandfather was a “fire engine chaser.” He got cited for it! I read the article once and thought, “What are you doing, Grandpa?”
Nicholas Paulukow
That was before you did the loop.
Mike DeBerdine
Yeah, I’m sure he didn’t even own a car then. The citation was for twenty-five dollars — a big deal in the 1920s! Probably had to pay it off on a payment plan.
Anyway, back to servant leadership — Mr. Rhoads embodied it. Everything I knew about him showed how much he cared for people. If a family was struggling, he made sure everyone had a job. If a mother was widowed, he’d say, “You just tell me when the next one’s ready to work.” He took care of entire families, creating opportunities for them to thrive.
He also cared deeply for customers. If someone couldn’t pay their bill, he’d say, “We’ve got you — just work on paying it down.” He ran a community business — personal, local, built on trust. With no children of his own, his company was his family.
When he and Mrs. Rhoads bought their restaurant in the 1930s, employees could eat there for free. It was a family atmosphere. Later, his sister-in-law, Mrs. Hostetler, took over as president after they passed. She lived in Quarryville too — no children either. The families were Mennonite, so it was just a different kind of legacy, built around faith and community.
When Mr. and Mrs. Hostetler passed, they transferred their stock to my parents — completely unknown to them. It came out during the reading of the will. Everyone understood the mission Mr. Rhoads had started, and they continued it.
We had tough times in the ’90s, but one thing my father taught me was integrity. He was a quiet leader — never a “rah-rah” guy. He led by example.
Nicholas Paulukow
I remember his sofa at the office.
Mike DeBerdine
Yeah — he had Parkinson’s, so we put a sofa in his office so he could rest. My mom said, “Let’s make sure he has a place to lie down.”
We moved into that office in 2001, and he passed a couple of years later.
What always sticks with me about his leadership is how he always did the right thing. He lived in the black and white — never the gray. That made life easier for everyone, even if it was painful sometimes.
Speaker 3
Yeah.
Mike DeBerdine
During the ’90s — actually starting in 1988, right before I joined — the Environmental Protection Agency required all underground tanks to be upgraded or removed. It was a good policy, and it needed to happen.
Mr. Rhoads had built the business through the ’30s, ’40s, and ’50s by putting in mom-and-pop gas stations — before Sheetz and Wawa even existed. These were little country stores with buried tanks.
In the propane model, the propane companies own the tanks in the field. So he owned all those tanks — dozens of them. We either had to sell them to the existing owners or remove them because ownership meant you controlled the supply.
By 1989, when I started, Pennsylvania regulations were on the table about how to comply with the new EPA requirements. I was the assistant controller…
Mike DeBerdine
I really didn’t even know what was going on at the time, but competitors were out selling as many tanks as they could to our customers. Of course, that gave those customers the opportunity to buy from anyone they wanted.
We were left with dozens and dozens of tanks, including on our own properties. We had an auto parts business that eventually was sold to Snavely and Dash, and then sold to Fisher Auto Parts. When you see Fisher Auto Parts locally, that’s essentially the extension of our old auto parts business. We had a tire recapping business, which still exists today with relatives of Mr. Rhoads — they bought it from us in ’91, and they’re second-generation owners from the buyers we sold to.
We had a convenience store in Intercourse with gas, a couple of full-service gas stations where you pulled in one side only — like on Prince Street, where our office used to be and where the police station is today. We operated six tractor-trailers in a transport business. We sold everything off except the small-truck home-delivery business for heating oil and some motor fuel delivery to farms. We kept a service department with maybe six service technicians. We went from 120–130 employees down to 25.
We knew our environmental obligation was going to be huge. We were doing anything we could to raise capital. But when you’re not making money, who wants to lend to you? We were dealing with Fulton Bank at the time, and it was very challenging — every year, for ten years.
So I leave my “thriving” health club business that was losing money, keep a sweeping business at night, and now I’m an assistant controller seeing the financials — and for ten years, we lost money.
Nicholas Paulukow
Maybe that’s why Dad didn’t tell you what the pay was.
Mike DeBerdine
It’s variable. Unbelievable.
It was a mess during that period. But here’s where I really “got it” with my dad. There’s a box — it still exists today in our office on Hazel Street, in the warehouse. I know exactly where it is. In it are all the equipment leases and tank leases. Invariably, we’d get a call: “I’m trying to sell my grandfather’s farm. I understand there’s a tank here. Do you own it? We don’t have any paperwork.”
My dad and I would go to the file — say, for an Amos Herr — pull the folder, and there it was: “Yep, we own it.” The sellers didn’t know. We were the only two people who did. Dad would say, “Let’s go down and get it cleaned up.” Thirty thousand dollars later.
Nicholas Paulukow
Oh wow — seriously?
Mike DeBerdine
Oh, yes.
Nicholas Paulukow
You had to dig the tank out?
Mike DeBerdine
Dig out the tank and pay for the soil cleanup. When those tanks were installed decades ago, it was bare steel in dirt. If they’d used even today’s simple practices — wrap a tank in sand or crushed stone — it would’ve been different. In the ground, you have electrical fields; a single rock pressing on a spot can eventually burn a hole through steel.
We had these issues all over — including on our own properties. Throughout the ’90s, it was environmental cleanup after cleanup, and all our profits paid for the sins of the past. We could have ignored some of it because no one had proof, but that wasn’t the right thing to do. It was a black-and-white decision: we own the tank, so we’re going to clean up the property. We had dozens of these across Chester and Lancaster counties. I could drive you around Penn Manor, Nick, and point them out: “We had a tank there, and there.” It was a mess — and it wore my dad down.
Nicholas Paulukow
That’d be hard for him.
Mike DeBerdine
Very. This was a legacy business — 75-plus years in at that point — and we were just hanging on, doing our best to make it to the next day. And we did. We did it the right way.
It proves that if you do the right thing, opportunity comes back. We believe luck plays a role in business, too. If you think you’re winning only because you’re smart, that’s not true. Fortune sometimes comes your way — acknowledge it. As they say, luck is when preparation and opportunity meet.
Mr. Rhoads built a heck of a business with great employees and acknowledged that by involving seven families. We had a lot of assets — a strong fleet, transport equipment, land — and we sold anything not essential to keep the core business alive.
Nicholas Paulukow
What a heck of an education when you show up. Terrible — and wonderful — way to learn the business.
Mike DeBerdine
How to balance a negative checkbook.
Nicholas Paulukow
You have a master’s degree in everything.
Mike DeBerdine
Yeah — given my “track record,” I’m not sure why we’re here today, Nick.
Nicholas Paulukow
What amazes me is how every generation has kept Mr. Rhoads’s vision alive — not just talking about it, but living it. The way you work in the community and take care of your people is fascinating. Plenty of generational businesses don’t make it past the second or third generation.
Mike DeBerdine
We’re up to four now. Actually, the fifth generation is working in the business. We’re very fortunate.
I’ve said this a million times because it’s true — and it’s become our mantra. A leader in our industry, who ran a big pipeline distribution company in central PA, wrote: “Your profits are not meant to be spent — they’re there to pay for your mistakes later.” We’ve tried to be good stewards, reinvesting profits responsibly, living within our means, and staying ready for the next opportunity.
This too will pass — the good and the bad. You won’t be steady forever. We just completed strategic planning and feel we’re in a good spot — lots of energy behind the team. They’re engaged and starting to really understand the ESOP. They’ve just received their third stock certificate, and now it’s meaningful and real.
At first, we launched in late October 2020, and folks got a certificate worth about 200 dollars without being vested. Lots of hoopla, but it didn’t feel like much — “Maybe I can pay for my gas.” One day in retirement, that’s a dinner out. But now it’s multiple thousands, and it’s nice to see.
My goal is that their ESOP retirement accounts will surpass anything they’ve put into their 401(k)s. I think we’ll get there — in fairly short order over the next several years. It’s another path to a solid retirement and echoes what Mr. Rhoads did for those seven families: create opportunity.
You reminded me of something about Mr. Rhoads. As my dad’s health declined, I dealt with the shareholders — many in their 80s, some nearing 90. We all knew each other from years around the business. They’d come to me and say, “Mike, we want to get out.” I’d explain the buy–sell: it’s based on X, there’s a discount, and we still have environmental liabilities. Every single time, I heard: “Thank you, Michael. We appreciate it.”
Not one of those seven families ever pushed back. They knew they had been given a gift in their 30s. Fifty years later, the stock wasn’t worth a fortune, and they were still grateful. We’d say, “We’ll pay you out over ten years.” — “Thank you, that’s fine.” “Market interest is 9%; can we pay 4%?” — “That’d be great, Mike.”
They got it. The kindness Mr. Rhoads showed them, they passed along. They were grateful stewards of a gift. I’ve heard so many stories from financial planners about families who would have fought for more — but we were fortunate. Mr. Rhoads set a model, and those stories kept transferring forward. We’ve been given a gift, and our job is to be good stewards of it.
Nicholas Paulukow
Now, was it difficult to work with your father?
Mike DeBerdine
My father gave me all sorts of rope to hang myself.
Nicholas Paulukow
Oh, so he gave you the opportunity to learn.
Mike DeBerdine
He sure did. Like, “How much can you lose, right? Before you lose the money, go ahead—do anything. Don’t lose more, Mike. Do anything to make money. Your track record’s so good.”
Nicholas Paulukow
Well, I mean, he saw how successful you were with the things you did. I’m sure he was proud of you.
Mike DeBerdine
Yeah, he was very proud of me, for sure. He was high school educated and learned everything at Rhoads—started as a bookkeeper and worked his way up. He gave me a lot of rope, and because the company was small and intimate during the ’90s, everyone knew everyone. I’d go talk to him—“Do you mind if we try this?”—and he’d say, “Sure, let’s give it a shot.”
That’s always been our style at Rhoads. We’re willing to take calculated risks. You understand it could be painful for a while if things don’t work out, but you still pursue opportunity. That’s part of who we are.
I feel like I’ve given my son, Nate—who’s been there a few years now—and Brooke, who’s been there almost a year, those same opportunities. Nate would love to move faster than I’ll let him, but man, the money that kid can spend! It’s a different time now, but it’s all infrastructure—transports, a railroad terminal—we’re growing.
Nicholas Paulukow
Do you ask him to put his house on the line for it, too?
Mike DeBerdine
Haven’t gotten there yet. I’m still on the hook for that one.
Nicholas Paulukow
That’s amazing. Now, how difficult has it been to pass down this mission of what you’ve all been given? How do you make sure your kids understand what it means to carry on that same legacy?
Mike DeBerdine
I mentioned before that I want to give them the opportunity. And opportunity, for us, means ownership—they have to have stock.
We’ve gone through some coaching as a family, and we’ll need more. Not because things aren’t going well, but because accountability is healthy. You don’t go to one practice and think you’ve got it all figured out. The same is true for business.
They understand there are two parts to the business: the job and the ownership. You get paid for the job you do—nothing more because your last name is DeBerdine. You earn your compensation, period. Then there’s ownership, which is different. I’ve started gifting stock to them, and we have family meetings where we talk about the plan.
It’s very clear, even to Emma, who works part-time remotely from Charlotte. Because she’s not full-time, she can’t receive stock yet—that’s how our agreements are written. We could change it, but we’re not going to. Between my mom, Deb, and the kids, we’re strict about those rules.
When we have family meetings, we’re transparent. Deb and I share everything—our retirement goals, our estate plan—and we remind them that fair is not always equal. I love that phrase. Each child’s path has been different. The girls were big into sports early on, which we invested a lot in. Nate, not as much on sports, but more on college. We’re not keeping score—everyone got a college education, and that’s what matters. Emma even went on to get her master’s, which makes me really proud.
Nicholas Paulukow
It sounds so healthy. I don’t hear many families having such open conversations.
Mike DeBerdine
And Brooke takes minutes! I love it. She’ll open her notebook: “Let me read back what you said last year.” And that’s good—it’s accountability. Did we do what we said we’d do? Are we on track? It’s all healthy.
I look forward to those meetings. I think the kids do too. It’s our time to align and make sure everyone understands where things are going.
Nicholas Paulukow
What would you say—because we’ve all had mentors and people who’ve influenced us—what’s one thing that’s really impacted you as a CEO?
Mike DeBerdine
Well, like I said earlier, my dad was my biggest influence. His integrity was unmatched. Mr. Rhoads, too, but I was too young to really understand it then. Watching my dad live it—that stuck with me. Integrity is hard. It’s painful sometimes. But it’s everything.
I wouldn’t say I have a single mentor beyond that, but Vistage has been incredibly important to me. If I hadn’t joined that group, I’d be a different person today. The people there—some of whom I’ve known since 2008—are brilliant, kind, and not afraid to make you uncomfortable.
That’s what mentorship should be—not just cheerleading, but challenging you to think differently. I still feel like I’m learning from them every time we meet. It’s a really smart, supportive group.
Nicholas Paulukow
And for listeners who are trying to become leaders or figure out what that means—what advice would you give them?
Mike DeBerdine
Be a habitual learner. Never stop learning. Don’t ever think you’re too smart to keep growing.
I spend a lot of time reading—probably more than I should. Mostly industry-related, but I read everything. I also attend seminars, hop into webinars—anything that helps me stay sharp. Then I share what I learn with the team through short videos or updates.
Continual learning is critical. And so is being open to feedback. That’s hard—especially when you’re sure you’re right. But you’ve got to listen. You learn more listening than talking.
We’re really pushing that culture of constructive feedback at Rhoads. I’ve been meeting with small groups—three to five people—every week. We have 165 employees across 11 counties, so one-on-ones are tough. These small groups let me connect directly with our frontline team—drivers, techs, CSRs. No managers, just the team.
It’ll take about a year to get through everyone, then I’ll circle back. The feedback’s been great—they appreciate being heard. We’re even documenting everything now with new tools to capture their input. It’s been awesome.
Nicholas Paulukow
That’s amazing. What a journey—and what an amazing family story. We appreciate all the work you do in the community, too. We didn’t even get to that today, but you give so much back, and that matters.
Mike DeBerdine
Thank you.
Nicholas Paulukow
And for everyone listening—Mike’s been a huge help to me personally as I started my business journey. I credit him for where our building is today and a lot more. He’s been a great guy and a great friend.
So, Mike, we appreciate you very much. For those who want to learn more about your journey, ESOPs, or your leadership philosophy, where can they go to find out more?
Mike DeBerdine
First of all, we’re not shy—and we don’t consider it a burden—when people reach out. We love sharing our story. When people want to learn more about ESOPs or our company, we…
Mike DeBerdine
We’re big on sharing best practices with other companies like ours. Of course, you have to be careful within your own market, but we share ideas with people across the state and the Mid-Atlantic region.
You can always go to our website — RhoadsEnergy.com. There, you’ll find videos about our history and information about the ESOP. Honestly, the ESOP piece is something I love talking about. I learned so much through that process, and we assembled a great team — from our trustee to our attorneys to the bank. It all came together really nicely, and it’s working well today.
We’re also active on LinkedIn, where we share stories and updates. Our HR director is passionate about sharing our journey, too. We’re all about openness — you don’t just have to read about us. We’re happy to sit down and talk.
And yes, we probably talk too much!
Nicholas Paulukow
Thank you, Mike. We appreciate you.
Well, I think Mike just proved that energy isn’t just about keeping the lights on — it’s about lighting people up. From 108 years of legacy to empowering your team through ownership, you’ve shown that servant leadership isn’t just a buzzword — it’s a fuel source. One that never runs out when it’s built on purpose and people.
Thanks for sharing your time and your wattage with us today.
To everyone listening, if you’ve enjoyed this conversation, don’t forget to subscribe to Servant Leader’s Library. I’m your host, Nicholas Paulukow, CEO of ONE 2 ONE, reminding you that leadership isn’t just about being in charge — it’s about being charged up to serve.
So until next time, stay curious, stay humble, and keep leading like you mean it.
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