MADA hosted its Annual Membership Meeting and Legislative Reception on January 19th in Annapolis.  We were pleased to have many members attend and had good representation from members of the Legislative body.   

MADA Chairman, JP Bishop, opened the meeting with comments on Association events and news.   Once again, MADA served as a presenting sponsor of the Teacher of the Year program and has awarded the gift of a new car to the winning teacher, this year the new car was a 2016 Kia Sedona.  The winning teacher, Ryan Kaiser, a 6th and 8th grade social studies teacher from the Mount Washington School in Baltimore City could not join us at the meeting, but he sent along his gratitude for MADA's generous support of the program.    

During the business portion of the meeting, we also congratulated MADA board member, Bill Aschenbach, of King Automotive Group, who will represent Maryland as our 2016 TIME Dealer of the Year nominee at the 2016 NADA/ATD Convention & Expo. Bill is a 2nd generation TDOY nominee; his father, Conrad Aschenbach was the nominee in 1990.  Bill was also recognized for his service on the Board.

Bill Aschenbach 2016 TDOY

We also recognized and thanked outgoing Directors, Jerry Dillard of Fitzgerald Auto Mall, and David Williams, Jr., Williams Automotive Family, for their years of service on the MADA Board of Directors.  Three new board members were approved during the business meeting.  Beginning their three-year term are the following directors: Matt Aiello of JBA Chevrolet Mitsubishi; Marc Cohen, Priority One Auto Group, returns to the board after several years hiatus; and Conrad R. Aschenbach of King Automotive Group.  Conrad is the son of Bill Aschenbach. 

Outgoing directors David Williams Jr. and Jerry Dillard

Two special guests also spoke during the meeting.  Deputy Secretary of the MD Department of Transportation, James F. Ports, Jr., attended at the request of Governor Hogan.   Mr. Ports assured our members that the Governor and the DOT are committed to improving the transportation infrastructure in Maryland, stating that dealers "put the people in the cars and they make sure that the roads are safe to travel."  We also heard from the newly appointed MVA Administrator, Christine Nizer.  Ms. Nizer stated that she's enjoyed working with Peter Kitzmiller and the dealer advisory panel to resolve some long-standing issues.  

Following the business meeting, members had the opportunity to meet with their elected officials and to impress upon them the importance that our industry plays in the state of Maryland.   To that end, MADA has provided an updated handout with the most recent economic and sales statistics on our local industry.  For an electronic version, please Click Here to access the handout.