LAUREL, Md. — The Drycleaning & Laundry Institute (DLI) recently announced its board of directors for the 2021-2022 term. The board is made up of industry professionals who own and/or operate fabricare businesses and are members of the organization. As the new directors are sworn in, their predecessors move on to an executive position or become DLI Senators.
The 2021-2022 DLI Board of Directors are:
Chair: Jess Culpepper, CGCP®, Culpepper Cleaners, San Antonio, Texas
President: Bobby Patel, Kona Cleaners, Costa Mesa, California
President-Elect Jeff Schwegmann II, CGCP®, Sunshine Cleaners, Cold Spring, Kentucky
Treasurer & District 1 Director: Kathy Benzinger, Benzinger's Dry Cleaning, Hamburg, New York
District 2 Director: Mark Pollock, Signature Cleaners, Doylestown, Pennsylvania
District 3 Director: Don Holecek, Crown Cleaners, Knoxville, Tennessee
District 4 Director: Ray Kroner, Kroner Dry Cleaners, Cincinnati, Ohio
District 5 Director: Ed Longanecker, Iris City Cleaners, Mount Pleasant, Iowa
District 6 Director: Kyle Nesbit, Tide Cleaners, Spring, Texas
District 7 Director: Hilary Taylor, Continental Cleaners, Salt Lake City, Utah
District 8 Director: Toran Brown, Rytina Fine Cleaners & Launderers, Sacramento, California
Allied Trades Director: Bill Odorizzi, Sankosha USA, Inc., Elk Grove Village, Illinois
DLI District Committee Members
In addition to its Board of Directors, DLI leadership includes a group of District Committee Members (DCMs), who help guide Board policy by providing additional perspectives from their DLI district. DCMs for the upcoming year are:
District 1 DCM: Larry Fish, Kingston Cleaners, Wakefield, Rhode Island
District 2 DCM: Norman Way, Puritan Cleaners, Richmond, Virginia
District 4 DCM: John Mertes, Ziker Cleaners, Inc., Mishawaka, Indiana
District 6 DCM: Allan Cripe, Valet Cleaners & Coin Laundry, Temple, Texas
District 7 DCM: Joe Blaha, GreenEarth Cleaning, Kansas City, Missouri
District 8 DCM: Sassan Rahimzadeh, Arya Cleaners, Chula Vista, California
Allied Trades DCM: Dru Shields, Enviroforensics, Indianapolis, Indiana
There are two openings still available — in Districts 3 and 5 — for DLI members who want to volunteer for the positions. The breakdown in districts by state are:
District 1: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont
District 2: Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia
District 3: Alabama, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee
District 4: Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio
District 5: Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin
District 6: Arkansas, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas
District 7: Arizona, Nevada, Alaska, Idaho, Colorado, Utah, Wyoming, Montana, Oregon, Washington
District 8: California, Hawaii
Have a question or comment? E-mail our editor Dave Davis at [email protected].