The only number that built this company

$8,500

The First Yes Award

One complete garage door system. Installed free, for a neighbor who earned it.

Presented the week after the HBA Parade of Homes

Nominate a neighbor

Nominations close October 4, 2026

Somebody said yes first.

Our first contract was for eighty-five hundred dollars. A stranger hired us in another town, more than ten years ago, back when Kooler was a guy with a truck and a standard he could not yet prove.

They had no reason to say yes. There was no reputation to check, no wall of reviews, no crew. There was a handshake and a promise about how the work would be done. They took the chance anyway.

Everything Kooler has become traces back to that one decision. Every Kraftsman who wears the name, every door we have hung on the Western Slope that closes quiet and safe, every guarantee we stand behind — all of it stands on a stranger deciding to believe somebody before he had earned it.

That is what this award is named for. Not a person and not a slogan — the moment somebody backs a neighbor before the neighbor has proved a thing. It is the thing this valley does better than anywhere else we have worked.

So this year we are giving away one complete garage door system — up to that same eighty-five hundred, same handshake — to honor a neighbor who has given this valley more than they were ever paid for.

Not the person who needs it most. The person who gave the most. This honors contribution, not hardship. You know who they are. Tell us.

Other companies fix doors. We restore certainty.

Nominate

Who in this valley deserves it?

For the neighbor whose Kraftsmanship showed up in what they gave this valley, more than they were ever paid for. One complete garage door system, professionally installed, up to $8,500. Tell us about them in your own words — the story matters more than the form.

Who are you nominating?

Your nominee needs to own their home inside our Western Slope service area — that is where the door goes.

What have they given this community that nobody paid them for? A few sentences is plenty.

And who are you?

Email or phone — we just need one way to reach you if your nomination is chosen.

Nominations close October 4, 2026 at 11:59 PM Mountain Time. We may contact you about your nomination. We do not sell your information. See our privacy policy.

The short version

There is no catch. We are giving away a garage door system. Here is the whole thing in four lines.

  • What it is. One complete garage door system, professionally installed by us, up to a total value of $8,500. Not cash, and we don't swap it for something else. If somebody wants to go bigger than that, the difference is theirs.
  • Who it can go to. A homeowner on the Western Slope, inside the area we serve. Anyone can nominate someone — just not yourself, and not anybody who works at Kooler or their families.
  • How it gets decided. Nominations close October 4, 2026 at 11:59 PM Mountain Time. We read every one and we choose. Tell the story straight and leave us a way to reach you. If your nominee is chosen, we ask their permission before we say their name anywhere. Everyone else's name and story stay with us. If something outside our control forces us to change the timing, we will say so right here on this page.
  • The tax part. A prize this size counts as income, so the taxes are the recipient's and a Form 1099 goes out where the law requires one. That part isn't ours to waive.

Sponsored by Kooler Homes LLC, doing business as Kooler Garage Doors. Facebook, Instagram and Meta don't sponsor, endorse or run the First Yes Award and aren't associated with it, and by nominating someone or accepting the award, you release them from any responsibility for it.

Questions? Call us at 970-660-3456.