LAUREL, Md. — The Drycleaning & Laundry Institute (DLI) is accepting nominations for its 2025 Hall of Fame Award, DLI’s highest honor.
Any industry professional is invited to nominate someone for the award, and membership in DLI or any other organization is not required to nominate a candidate or receive an award.
DLI’s Board of Directors established the Hall of Fame Award to recognize and acknowledge individuals who have contributed to the betterment of the drycleaning and laundry industry, the Institute says.
Nominations are open until May 15 and will be accepted from any industry participant, regardless of organizational membership, through a form available at DLIonline.org/HoF. The Board of Directors will review applications, and recipients will be announced to the industry by mid-September.
Candidates for the prestigious award include industry pioneers, exceptional business leaders, and community advocates, the Institute says: “DLI intends to shine a spotlight on individuals who have made a lasting positive impact on the industry.”
To be eligible for nomination, individuals must have a minimum of 10 years of experience working in the drycleaning and laundry industry. The selection procedure will involve a two-stage voting process by DLI’s Hall of Fame committee.
“Professional drycleaning and laundry operators from all over the world contribute to the betterment of our industry every day,” says DLI CEO Mary Scalco. “Our goal with the Hall of Fame is to recognize contributions made by any professional in our industry who has made a positive impact and honor them as examples for other members of the industry.
“All cleaning professionals, regardless of membership, are welcome to nominate industry professionals they see as inspirational for this award.”
“At a DLI Board meeting last year, we all thought of people in our industry who helped us grow personally and professionally and how we might honor them,” says Norman Way of Puritan Cleaners in Richmond, Virginia, and District 2 Director on the DLI Board. “We know others feel the same and the DLI Hall of Fame Award seems like the perfect way to commend and recognize these impactful leaders.”
DLI has recognized 11 industry leaders with its Hall of Fame Award to date:
- Barney Deden, retired dry cleaner in Omaha, Nebraska
- Stan Golomb, founder of The Golomb Group, Chicago
- Chris Edwards, A Cleaner World, High Point, North Carolina
- Jeff Miller, Miller’s Fine Drycleaning, Hendersonville, North Carolina
- Sid Tuchman, Tuchman Training Systems, San Francisco, California
- Don Fawcett, Dependable Cleaners, Quincy, Massachusetts
- Milt Chortkoff, Milt & Edie’s Drycleaning & Tailoring Center, Burbank, California
- Walter “Buster” Bell, Bell Laundry and Cleaners, Spartanburg, South Carolina
- William Joseph “Dixie” Stoddard, inventor of Stoddard solvent, and a DLI past president
- James Douglas, GreenEarth Cleaning
- Michael Nesbit, MW Cleaners in Spring, Texas, and a DLI past president
To learn more about the DLI Hall of Fame Award and to make a nomination, visit DLI’s Hall of Fame page at DLIonline.org/HoF.
Have a question or comment? E-mail our editor Dave Davis at [email protected].
