Winter 2010

Gardner Foreign Auto Parts, Inc. in Pompano Beach, Fla. is Gold Seal certified and a Florida Green Yard. What can't be recycled at work, owner George Gardner takes it home and adds it to his personal recycling.

Practically growing up at her father's business, Alice Corns has a lot of experience in auto recycling. She joined the business, Colorado Auto & Parts, in Englewood, Colo. 30 years ago and officially took over after her father, Norman Sample, died in 2004. She has consistently worked to be an example others can look up to in the industry.

When you call Nordstrom's Automotive, Inc. in Garretson, S.D. it's owner Shannon Nordstrom's voice you hear. If you tune into KJAM in Madison, S.D. or 19 other area radio stations, you'll hear Nordstrom and employee Russ Evans put on an industry radio show called "Under The Hood." If you visit Nordstrom's Automotive in October, you can see Nordstrom running the annual Fall Harvest Days at Ewe-Pullet, his self-service facility.

In the southeastern United States, self-service means Pull-A-Part. That name recognition has spread to the Midwest. Headquartered in Atlanta, Ga., Pull-a-Part (PullAPart.com) currently has 23 locations in the United States, with the newest Canton, Ohio location opening in 2009.

Rob Rainwater knows auto parts sales. Employed at the same business for 17 years, the last nine as the general manager, he has perfected his craft.

For nearly 40 years, Harry Haluptzok has contributed his expertise to associations like ARM (Automotive Recyclers of Minnesota) and ARA, written education manuals for fellow auto recyclers and spoken at countless industry conferences.

Have you heard of Chris Wright? If you haven't yet, you soon will. Wright is president of Capital Auto Parts, Inc. in Thomasville, Ga. and the newest member of the ARA executive committee. He joined the group as secretary at the 2009 ARA convention in Lexington, Ky. No stranger to the national association, Wright previously served as an ARA regional director before taking a break to focus on his family and the business.

Bill Tolpa has some big ideas about where ARA will be heading this year. After three years of serving on the ARA executive committee, he finally took the reins as president at the 2009 ARA convention. He is developing a new insurance plan for ARA members and non-members; and he pushed to get the Cash For Clunkers crushing deadline extended.

In July 2009, anyone across the country who read the news got a good look at what professional auto recyclers thought about the proposed Cash for Clunkers legislation. A picture of Norman Wright, owner of Stadium Auto & Truck Parts, Inc., in Denver, Colo., appeared on MSNBC.com as part of an Associated Press article, "Auto Recyclers Leery Of Cash For Clunkers." The article quoted Wright's dislike of the legislation because it depletes the source of reliable, used vehicles and parts, thus raising future prices.

When you see Northlake Auto Recyclers, Inc., in Hammond, Ind., you can tell right away the business is a labor of love for owner Marty Hollingshead. He bought the business 25 years ago, after working there one year. Since then, he has made numerous aesthetic improvements. Hollingshead handcrafted all of the woodwork in the office, built a hockey rink in the back and overhauled the facility's landscaping.

No one is more enthusiastic about what technology can do for the automotive recycling industry than Roger Fugere. Fugere, his brother Philippe and partner Andre Savard were the visionaries behind the first full e-commerce web site, Lecavalier.com.

As one of the chairs of the 2009 Upper Midwest convention committee, Jim Weiland, Concerned Auto Recyclers of Wisconsin (CARS of WI) vice president, put in long hours for the five-state event.

When an owner can't be at the business, the transition of responsibilities to the second-in-command should be seamless. The employees should know someone has the answers when the boss isn't there. At Bill's Auto Parts, Cumberland, R.I., that person is General Manager Jim Pinault.

David Gold, co-owner of Standard Auto Wreckers in Scarborough, Ontario and Niagara Falls, N.Y., embodies the best of auto recyclers in all categories. He has influenced many facets of the industry - environment, technology and association - while running two businesses in two countries.

The phrase, "You can catch more flies with honey than vinegar," directly applies to Dwight Howard. A United Recyclers Group (URG) Advisory Group member, Howard uses his calm, laid-back demeanor to motivate auto recyclers.

Businesses associated with General Motors had a tough year. Between the closing of plants and the motor company's bankruptcy filing, there was a genuine fear of the unknown. But, Corvette Recycling in Farmington, Utah, owned by Doug & Julie Asay, not only weathered the storm, it grew in GM's wake.

Taia Cesana is the epitome of a new generation auto recycler. She joined her father Bill Cesana's business, East Coast Auto Salvage, Inc. in Higganum, Conn., as a fulltime employee in 2004. Cesana immediately focused on upgrading the business' web site and Internet marketing. East Coast Auto Salvage is now an eBay PowerSeller.

Fundraising came to life - and leapt off the table - at the 2009 ARA Convention & Exposition in Lexington, Ky. The Friday night ARA Educational Foundation (ARAEF) fundraising event incorporated the area's love of horse breeding and racing. Fran Reitman, co-owner of Reitman Auto Parts, Melbourne, Ky.; Kelly Roepke, Y-Yard Auto & Truck, Inc., Effingham, Ill.; and Sandy Blalock, Capo's Truck & Auto Parts, Inc., Albuquerque, N.M., planned the "Night At The Races" event.

There are those who have made a name for themselves in the auto recycling industry, and then there are the Spaldings … the Northwest's first family of auto recycling.

Chris Mantas is leading Tear A Part, LLC, Salt Lake City, Utah, into the future. Besides the numerous awards the business has received - Tear A Part has raised close to $1 million for the National Kidney Foundation of Utah & Idaho and was the first facility in the state to remove and dispose of mercury switches - Mantas and staff are working to develop new ways to keep the self-service facility pollution-free.

Ed MacDonald gives until it hurts, literally. He is a founding board member of Automotive Recyclers of Canada (ARC) and chairman since 2003. He is an ARA regional director and participated in the International Round Table in Australia in 2008.

Motor Pro Auto Recycling in Gilbert, Ariz. has reportedly grown by 500 percent since Mark Buessing purchased it in 2003.

If e-commerce is the path to the future, Jim Eitvydas is handing out the map. Over the last six years, Eitvydas has made the company an eBay Platinum PowerSeller and one of the top five PowerSellers on eBay Motors.

With Washington, D.C. in his backyard, Rick Morrow, vice president of M & M Auto Parts, Inc. in Falmouth, Va., is poised to be the face of the American automotive recycling industry, a role he gladly accepts.

"Aggressive, top-notch facilities that understand the power of networking and education." That's how Locator Executive Vice President / C.O.O. Charis Lloyd described the businesses featured on the following pages.

In 2009, Bill & Susan Weaver's 12-year-old auto recycling business, Trade Street, Inc. in Danville, Va., moved in a new direction. The duo, along with son Greg Weaver, took their used auto parts facility and teamed up with a local scrap recycler, Cycle Systems, to form AutoCycle, LLC.