SANTA FE SPRINGS, Calif. — The California Tire Dealers Association (CTDA) has inducted Ken Kevorkian, the group's president in 1993-94 and an industry advocate with several governmental entities, into its Hall of Fame at the group's recent New Year Luncheon in Santa Fe Springs.
One of the first members of the CTDA, Kevorkian was its president in 1993 and 1994 and served as a director of the National Tire Dealers & Retreaders Association (NTDRA).
Kevorkian, who is retired, began his career at United Vulcanizing after serving in the Korean War. He also chaired the California Transportation Commission, appointed by Gov. George Deukmejian.
Kevorkian also was president of the California-Nevada Super Speed Train Commission and as a director of the California State Assistance Fund for Enterprise, Business and Industrial Development. In his spare time, he was a volunteer with the United Armenian Congregational Church in Los Angeles.
During the luncheon, held Jan. 26 at Geezers Restaurant in Santa Fe Springs, Tire Industry Association (TIA) CEO Dick Gust and Carlstar Group's Steve Swanson were the featured speakers.
Gust, in his second year as TIA CEO, and Swanson, who was representing the Specialty Equipment Market Association Wheel & Tire Council (WTC), discussed various topics related to their areas of expertise.
Sponsors of this year's luncheon included event host 1-800 EveryRim OEM Wheels; diamond sponsor Federated Insurance; gold sponsors Advanced Auto Parts, Mighty Auto Parts; RoboTire; TireTutor; Wholesale Tire Distributors; and Yokohama Tire Corp. Silver sponsors were Atturo Tire Corp.; Conceptual Minds; NetDriven; Optimize Digital Marketing; and Penn Tires; and ShopMonkey.