Sonoma County Small Biz Nets Green Award

 Liberty Valley Doors, a Cotati-based custom door manufacturer, was named small business of the year by State Assemblyman Jared Huffman, D-San Rafael, at a business awards ceremony yesterday in Sacramento.

“Liberty Valley Doors is a model for successful environmental business practices and community involvement,” said Huffman said in a news release. “I am proud to honor this green business on 'California small business day.'”

Owner Mike Pastryk, who started the shop in 1978 with a friend, said he's committed to sustainable building, energy and economic practices.

Pastryk uses standards put forth by the Forest Stewardship Council, which requires that wood used be tracked from the forest, to the mill, to the shop — to guarantee that it is a sustainably made product.

The company recently started a line of doors made from reclaimed lumber and have built over 800 of them to date without cutting down a single tree.

“I truly believe that had I not become a sustainable company and gone solar we be out of business,” Pastryk said in January.

Pastryk’s move towards a “green” business practices increased when, in 2008, he installed a solar power system on the roof of his shop. That move grew from the desire to have lower energy bills and to increase the sustainability of his business — it's an ethos that extends even further.

Pastryk also donates leftover wood to area high schools for use in woodshop programs and is actively involved with the Rotary Club of Rohnert Park-Cotati and the Cotati Chamber of Commerce.

This isn't Pastryk's first time being recognized. In January Huffman awarded Liberty Valley Doors the Sustainable North Bay Award.