OSAGE BEACH, Mo. (Oct. 11, 2002)—The Missouri Tire Dealers & Retreaders Association has changed its name to the Missouri Tire Industry Association.
“We thought it would be a tie-in to the national association,” said Joe Inchiostro, the group's president. “It indicates that the industry is broader and wider than it has been in the past in terms of involvement by suppliers.”
He noted the Missouri group wants to maintain a closer relationship with the national Tire Industry Association on government relations and exchange information on legislative issues in Missouri and Washington, D.C.
Members of the association discussed the possibility of a name change during the group´s annual convention Aug. 2-4 at the Tan-Tar-A Resort in Osage Beach, Mo. At the meeting, the group also awarded four $750 scholarships and inducted three members into its newly formed Hall of Fame.
Inducted into the Hall of Fame were: Mike Berra, founder of Community Tire Co. Inc., St. Louis; Bob Purcell, founder of Purcell Tire & Rubber Co., Potosi, Mo., and Ed Weiss, the association's first full-time executive director. The families of the three inductees received the awards posthumously on their behalf.
The association created the Hall of Fame, Mr. Inchiostro said, to recognize those who have made outstanding contributions to the growth and development of Missouri's tire industry.
Four students, whose families are employed by MTIA member dealerships, received the scholarships. The recipients are: Erin Hardesty of Hardesty Alignment in Platte City; Rachel Mertens of Autotire Car Care Centers in St. Peters; Lindsay Phillips of Kinkade Tire in North Kansas City; and Rachel Vogt of Dobbs Tire & Auto Centers in North Ridge.