RSE Celebrates 60 Years
It’s an incredible honor to be celebrating 60 years as an agency. RSE was the first women-run agency in Sacramento. It all started when a woman with a strong personality, contagious spirit, and passion for giving back to her community trailblazed her way through Sacramento. Jean Runyon was a force of nature. She broke glass ceilings for women – to be honest, she shattered them. Our founder was a woman who knew what she wanted and did what it took to get there. She loved the work, and she became a leader and friend to just about everyone who knew her.
But Jean’s impact didn’t stop there. Many years ago, a tradition began that would touch the lives of many Sacramentans. It all started with a dare from her husband, “Jeanie, why don’t you go sit on the roof.” In true Jean fashion, she marched to the roof of her house in her Halloween witch costume and blackened out teeth, threw candy to the trick-or-treaters below with a terrifying cackle, and the rest is history. Every Halloween after that, Jean went to her roof and threw out candy for the children (maybe even the adults, too!), and it turned into an event that people would never forget.
Her love of Halloween became a note-worthy tradition in the RSE office, as well. Each year a theme is chosen, the entire office is decorated from desk to desk, and every employee dresses up for the ghoulish festivities. With a little office competition, this annual event continues to this day in memory of Jean and her love for theatrics.
For the past three years, RSE has incorporated a new tradition – Jeanitude. This day falls on our beloved Jean’s birthday and is in honor of her love of giving back to the community. Each year, a local non-profit is selected, and the entire agency spends the day helping in whatever way is needed. From planting new gardens and painting to cleaning out and re-organizing a space, the office gets together to help. But we don’t stop there. We’re always finding new ways to give back to our community, whether it be in-person service or offering our agency expertise.
From classic Halloween traditions to new community outreach traditions, RSE continues to grow upon the foundation built by Jean Runyon. What started as a public relations business has grown significantly over the last six decades. Over the years, we added digital marketing, public affairs and social impact to our list of strengths. With each day and year, we continue to keep the legacy of Jean alive by being leaders in our community and creating trailblazing work that makes us proud. Follow along on our journey, we believe we have more in store than even Jean could have imagined.