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Inducted 2002
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Joseph Parisi is the co-founder and president of Therma Inc., a Bay
Area design/build mechanical contractor. Therma has served the
plumbing and air conditioning industry for more than 30 years,
offering special expertise in clean room technology for semiconductor
companies, process piping for biopharmaceutical companies, and
prefabrication of piping and duct work. In college, Mr. Parisi,
Therma's co-founder and chief financial officer, majored in
mechanical engineering at San Jose State University.
Ms. Parisi, the daughter of a successful mechanical contractor, came
naturally to the business she and Mr. Parisi co-founded. In the
beginning, she set up the books and the framework for the accounting
system. In the years since, she has continued to oversee the
company's accounting processes while also helping with the design
and decoration of the offices in addition to her other duties. Over the
years, Joe and Nicki Parisi have been very active in charitable
organizations and community affairs. They have taken leadership roles
in raising funds for the American Cancer Society, Arthritis
Foundation, VMC Foundation, and the House on the Hill, among
others.
They also encourage their employees to give back to the community
in various ways, such as arranging for employees to fill Christmas
stockings and Easter baskets to send to children in battered women's
shelters.
Mr. Parisi has served as a board member to many nonprofit
organizations such as Joint Venture Silicon Valley Network and the
Valley Medical Center Foundation, KTEH, National Hispanic
University and the Role Model Program. Mr. Parisi is past president
of the local chapter of the Sheet Metal Contractors National
Association, and he is founder and president of the Santa Clara
Valley Contractors Association.
Ms. Parisi was honored in 2001 by the YWCA in Santa Clara Valley
as part of its Tribute to Women and Industry (TWIN). The awards
are given throughout the United States by the local and regional
YWCAs, and they recognize successful women executives for their
outstanding achievements.
Therma even has the image of an outstretched helping hand designed
right into the capital T of its company logo. "I like it both as the logo
for our company and for our charity work,"
Mr. Parisi says on the company's Web site. As a company, Therma
was selected for special recognition on May 1, 1998, when President
Clinton visited Therma to tour the sheet metal shop and to hold a
roundtable discussion with employees to learn more about the
company.
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