10.30.23 – It was a great night of camaraderie and laughter as members of the Alliance of Automotive Service Providers of New Jersey (AASP/NJ) filled the Gran Centurions in Clark, NJ to witness the association’s annual Board of Director elections and award ceremony, and enjoy a hilarious set by legendary comedian and TV star Rich Vos.
Festivities began with the election of Ken Miller (821 Collision; North Haledon, NJ) as AASP/NJ’s incoming president. Miller has been an active member of the Board of Directors since 2021. He has been instrumental in developing education and training programs for the association and helped spearhead the annual Young Technician of the Year Awards, which is presented annually at AASP/NJ’s flagship NORTHEAST® Automotive Services Show.
“I’m honored to be here as President,” expressed Miller. “Thank you for this opportunity. Some of you may know me from some of the training meetings we’ve been presenting. Education is the focus of AASP/NJ, and we do a lot of education. Those of you who have not been to our past events, I invite you to come out and see what we are doing. We are working hard to really bring benefits to everyone.”
Miller also thanked his predecessor, Jerry McNee (Ultimate Collision Repair; Edison, NJ) who served the last six years – three terms – as president. McNee was elected to continue to serve AASP/NJ as the Collision Chairman/Past President Attending, while Keith Krehel (Krehel Automotive Repair; Clifton) was re-elected as AASP/NJ Mechanical Chairman.
The following members of the Board were re-elected for three-year terms (2023-2026): Joe Amato, Sr. (The Amato Agency/World Insurance Associates; Neptune, NJ), Dennis Cataldo, Jr. (D&M Auto Body; Old Bridge, NJ), Brad Crawford (Livingston Collision; Livingston, NJ), Gary Gardella, Jr. (County Line Auto Body; Howell, NJ), Jeff McDowell (Leslie’s Auto Body; Fords, NJ) and Ted Rainer (Ocean Bay Auto Body; Point Pleasant, NJ).
Celebrations that evening also included the induction of longtime AASP/NJ Board member Anthony Trama (Bloomfield Auto Body; Bloomfield, NJ) into the association’s Hall of Fame. Michael Giamo of Main Auto Body (Lodi, NJ) was honored as the Stan Wilson/New Jersey Automotive Body Shop of the Year for 2023, and Cole Daly of Auto Tech Collision (Sewell, NJ) received the Russ Robson Scholarship. Jerry McNee was also presented with the Past President Award from predecessor Jeff McDowell.
Following the presentations, attendees enjoyed a performance from HBO, Netflix and “Last Comic Standing” comedy star Rich Vos, who had attendees crying with laughter throughout his 75 minute set.
Stay tuned for more coverage of the Annual Meeting in upcoming issues of New Jersey Automotive, available at grecopublishing.com.
For more information on AASP/NJ, please visit aaspnj.org.