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Launch Tech Celebrates 30th Anniversary
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By Counterman
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link hidden, please login to view announced the launch of its 65th-anniversary fundraising initiative. Running through July 1, 2024, the campaign aims to raise $65,000 through 1,000 donations of $65 each. This impactful effort highlights the industry’s commitment to taking care of its own, the AACF said. From sudden illness and death to natural disasters, the foundation has provided assistance to industry professionals and their families during their darkest hours. As AACF celebrates its 65th year of service, it remains steadfast in its mission to provide financial support and resources to those in the automotive aftermarket industry in need, the organization said.
In honor of this milestone, AACF is calling upon automotive aftermarket industry professionals, as well as compassionate individuals eager to lend a helping hand, to join forces in raising $65,000. By
link hidden, please login to view, supporters can contribute to a fund that offer vital assistance during a time of greatest need. “Over the past 65 years, AACF has remained unwavering in its commitment to supporting members of the automotive aftermarket community during their most challenging moments,” said Joel Ayres, AACF executive director. “As we embark on this historic fundraising initiative, we are inspired by the generosity and compassion of our supporters. Together, we can make a profound difference in the lives of those facing adversity, demonstrating the industry’s unwavering dedication to taking care of its own.”
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By Counterman
The ASE Education Foundation is partnering with auto dealer associations to conduct student automotive competitions designed to increase awareness of career opportunities in the automotive industry.
“The goal of the student competitions is to connect businesses with schools and increase the interest of students, encouraging them to work and stay within the automotive field,” said Mike Coley, ASE Education Foundation president. “The most recent competition was held in December in Texas and was a big success with 40 teams competing and over 700 students participating in a career fair. These types of events are another way the ASE Education Foundation is working to reduce the industry’s technician shortage.”
Three student competitions are currently scheduled for 2024, with more being planned. Competitions are scheduled for March in Charlotte and the fall in Houston.
During the December event at Texas Motor Speedway, 117 high school seniors from ASE accredited training programs competed in the North Texas Automobile Dealers Auto Tech Competition. Dealer technicians were paired with each of the 40 teams for several weeks leading up to the event, which featured students trying to diagnose and repair bugged vehicles where the problems were notated on repair orders.
The competition format is flexible and can be modified for local or organizational needs. Unlike traditional student competitions where school instructors train and prepare students, these competitions are based on a partnership between schools and the local businesses.
The students selected for the competition job-shadow at a local employer’s service facility and prepare for the contest alongside the technicians in the shop. A list of specific skills for the students to experience is provided to each employer.
The goal is to provide real-world experience to the students while exposing them to job opportunities in the local market, the foundation noted.
To learn more about the student competitions, contact George Arrants, vice president of the ASE Education Foundation, at [email protected].
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By Counterman
Photo caption: From left, Claudia and Dr. David Fry (standing) are pictured as Dr. Fry receives the Wings of Freedom Award in 2022 in Bay Harbor, Michigan.
Northwood University announced the passing of former President David E. Fry, “a visionary leader, esteemed educator and beloved patriarch in the Northwood University family.”
Fry, who served as Northwood’s CEO from 1982 to 2006, passed away Tuesday, Dec. 19.
“Dr. Fry fostered Northwood University’s growth and progress as the longest-serving president and left an indelible mark on the institution,” reflected Northwood President Kent MacDonald. “Today, Northwood continues to advance the mission personified by Dr. Fry to develop free-enterprise leaders across America and around the world.”
Fry began his distinguished career as an economics professor with research and teaching interests in business, global economics and free markets. As president, he focused on creating an environment where this passion could be passed on to generations of students through the University’s philosophy, which values individual freedom and responsibility, earned success, moral law and the importance of free enterprise.
Fry proudly exemplified these institutional tenets of “The Northwood Idea,” the university said.
“Dr. Fry’s legacy includes leading Northwood through significant change, including growing the University academically from an institute to a university and opening the DeVos Graduate School of Management in 1993,” stated Kristin Stehouwer, provost, and vice president, academic affairs. “The more than 23,000 students who proudly graduated from Northwood University while Dr. Fry was leading from the helm – alumni who have gone on to impact private industry – is a testament to his leadership.”
The Early Days
At age 22, David Fry was part of an extraordinary faculty class recruited to Northwood in 1965. He became an intellectual descendant of Dr. V. Orval Watts, Northwood’s first legendary faculty member who gave shape and form to The Northwood Idea. Beloved in the classroom, Fry was named “Outstanding Teacher of the Year” by students in 1967 and 1968.
Fry was so talented that the school’s founders – Arthur and Johann Turner and Gary and Willa Stauffer – promoted him to an administrator role in 1969. In 1971, the founders gave him a mission to plant seeds of enterprise in Indiana, where he flourished. As much as he enjoyed teaching, he had an inherent gift to lead, inspire optimism, and influence different constituencies to share a common dream.
Along the way, he had taken time to establish solid academic credentials. Just as the school’s fortunes started to sour in the mid-1970s, Fry had fortuitously taken a sabbatical to earn his doctorate in business administration.
In a historic move, the Northwood Board of Trustees appointed Fry president and CEO of the Northwood Institute in 1982, making him one of the youngest college presidents in the United States.
Nancy Barker, a Midland resident who has served multiple roles with Northwood since 1971, including vice president of university relations, reflected on how he started as a young professor and eventually became one of Northwood’s greatest leaders.
“David evolved over the years. He was respected and had a wonderful relationship with the professors because he had been a faculty member and fully understood their important role in the classroom and for the success of Northwood,” Barker said. “David was a dynamic and challenging leader. He expected and encouraged those around him to do their best and gave them the support and opportunity to do that. His officers were a team who worked pretty much 24/7, as did he. David took the original Turner-Stauffer vision to a whole new level; his impact was international and yet still very personal.”
“All our lives were devoted to Northwood, this small growing institution, and Dr. Fry was our leader who paved the way.”
As involved as Johann Turner and Willa Stauffer were in their respective husbands’ work, so was Fry’s wife, Claudia. She is known as half the team that transformed Northwood from the early 1980s until Fry retired as its president in 2006.
“Claudia was always there for David,” reminisced Dr. Timothy Nash, Northwood vice president emeritus and director of the McNair Center for Free Enterprise. “She was the Rock of Gibraltar, the anchor in his life who played the more direct role in raising their two wonderful children, Daniel and Julie. Claudia has always had a strong intellect, passion, and interest in The Northwood Idea, global economics and business.”
“David has had a much better and more fulfilled life with Claudia by his side, and Northwood has a larger global footprint because of the two,” Nash added.
Expanding Academic Offerings
Under Fry’s leadership, Northwood experienced major academic expansions, including seeing Arthur Turner’s dream of a Florida campus come to fruition in West Palm Beach in 1983. He also fostered professional development partnerships with businesses and industry, the military, and community colleges.
Northwood began recruiting underserved students who needed access to various delivery methods and options to complete their degrees. Now known as Northwood Online, this was the start of Northwood’s Adult Degree Program, a delivery of content that enhanced access to higher education for adult learners who couldn’t attend college due to time constraints.
The DeVos Graduate School of Management was born in 1993 under Fry’s leadership. Since its beginning, the graduate school has attracted students worldwide. More importantly, its graduates have become entrepreneurs, leaders in the industry, mentors, and role models.
A University Well-Led, A Life Well-Lived
After facing many transitional and financial challenges, Fry and his team elevated Northwood to new heights. Campuses expanded, programs improved and grew and university status was achieved. Once back on solid footing, leaders focused on creative opportunities and innovations that lay ahead, distinguishing the Fry legacy.
“David’s great contribution was leadership,” stated Dr. Robert Serum, a long-time academic leader and innovator of international programs at Northwood, who is credited with navigating significant educational innovations for over two decades, starting in the late 1980s. “There are a lot of good managers out there, but there aren’t a lot of good leaders. David could walk into a room full of CEOs, all of whom had big egos, and before you knew it, they all wanted him as a friend. He was very popular wherever he went with faculty and staff, with other administrators and teachers, and especially with businesspeople. He epitomized what they believed in, free enterprise and every dimension of The Northwood Idea.”
Those who worked with Fry noted he had a brilliant mind and was a spell-binding speaker.
“His eloquence was so outstanding,” stated Dr. Marjorie Hohman, former board of trustee member, Distinguished Women honoree, and honorary doctoral degree recipient. “He was a people person, first. He was very good at connecting with people and holding their attention because he was such an eloquent speaker. He could stand in front of a crowd and captivate them because his command of the English language was superb.”
Hohman admired Dr. Fry’s influence on those he worked with. “The most outstanding thing about him was his leadership abilities and how he was able to get the best out of people,” she said. “He was such a mentor to so many.”
In honor of the tremendous progress made under Fry’s watch, the Northwood community came together to fund the David E. Fry Endowed Professorship to celebrate his retirement.
Recognizing his outstanding contributions to Northwood, in 2009, the University vested upon Fry its highest honor, Doctor of Laws, Honoris Causa.
Most recently, in 2022, Fry received the Wings of Freedom Award, created in honor of Northwood University’s own Dr. Dale Haywood. Northwood bestows this honor upon individuals whose lives have contributed to human progress, individual liberty, and economic and social prosperity.
“Dr. Fry’s legacy lives on at Northwood University, and we are forever thankful for his transformative role in our history,” stated President MacDonald. He continued, “Over my career, I have had the opportunity to research academic leaders around the globe and it is clear to me that Dr. Fry was one of the most transformational leaders in American higher education.”
Donors who would like to support Fry’s legacy can do so through a donation to the David E. Fry Endowed Professorship.
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By Counterman
MEMA Aftermarket Suppliers wrapped up the recent Aftermarket Technology Conference with a fun contest to raise funds in support of the Automotive Aftermarket Charitable Foundation (AACF).
Terence O’Reilly and Jeffrey Marshall of Pricedex Software, the conference’s premier sponsor, once again led closing banquet attendees in the “Toonie Game.” O’Reilly and Marshall each flipped Canadian two-dollar pieces, or “Toonies,” as they are informally referenced in Canada.
Attendees participated by making donations to the
link hidden, please login to view and guessing how the coins would land. A series of fun and suspenseful elimination rounds resulted in a single remaining individual, Scott Howat of Tendeco Sales, who won a pair of watches, courtesy of Pricedex. “Beyond being an influential event for our industry, the Aftermarket Technology Conference embodies a collective spirit,” said Terry O’Reilly, president and chief executive officer of Pricedex and AACF corporate secretary. “It’s a chance for us to unite around the objective of advancing the aftermarket and amplify the invaluable assistance AACF provides to families nationwide.”
Between attendees’ contributions and MEMA’s donation-matching pledge, a total of $1,400 was raised to support the vital efforts and initiatives of the AACF.
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By Counterman
Arnold Motor Supply, in collaboration with several channel partners in the automotive aftermarket, raised $75,000 for the nonprofit Tori’s Angels.
The company celebrated the fundraising achievement during its annual golf and leisure event.
link hidden, please login to view is a nonprofit organization dedicated to assisting children with life-threatening medical challenges. “Tori’s Angels makes a profound difference in the lives of children and families in Iowa,” said Eric Johnson, president and managing partner at Arnold Motor Supply. “With the support of our valued channel partners, we’re thrilled to have made a meaningful difference for approximately 20 more families in need.”
Tori’s Angels covers all medical and travel expenses not covered by insurance, providing support from acceptance into the program until a child’s 19th birthday. The foundation always is looking for more children to help. Tori’s Angels CEO, Kirby Klinge, encourages Iowa families to reach out to the foundation for more information.
Channel Partners Recognized
Arnold Motor Supply also took the opportunity to recognize outstanding contributions from key channel partners during the event.
The company recognized PPG Industries as Vendor of the Year for PPG’s exceptional partnership and commitment through training, shop certification programs and inventory optimization.
East Penn’s Mark Hoffman, Kevin Irlocker and Ben Clark were named Reps of the Year for their customer-loyalty programs and field support.
Arnold Motor presented the Agency Partner of the Year award to Greg Nevins and Jeff Ridley of N.A. Williams, acknowledging their substantial contributions during product changeovers, fieldwork and wrap-around program support.
“Arnold Motor Supply and their channel partners remain dedicated to community support, improving the lives of those in need and reinforcing their collaborative efforts for the future,” the company said.
The company would like to recognize the major sponsors that helped to nearly double the donation over last year’s fundraising efforts: Valvoline, BBB Industries, 3M, Delphi, Dorman Products, Dayton Parts, East Penn, First Brands Group, Growmark, Motorcar Parts of America, Akzo Nobel, AP Emissions, Denso, Gates Corp., Northland Oil, Mevotech, Bosch, C-Aire Compressors and Highline Warren.
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