TRSA Elects New Chair

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TRSA, the association for linen, uniform, and facility services, hosted the swearing-in of new Officers and Directors on October 22 during the business meeting at its 107th Annual Conference in Alexandria, VA. The elections were conducted via mail-in vote by a quorum of its members.

New Leadership

Noël Hammer Richardson, president, CEO, and owner of Shasta Linen Supply Inc. in Sacramento, CA, has been elected TRSA’s chair for 2020–2022. She is the first female chair in TRSA’s 108-year history.

“It has been my pleasure serving on the TRSA board, and I am honored to be elected the first female chair in TRSA’s history,” said Richardson. “My father, the late Tom Hammer, served as chair for TRSA in 1989. He always talked about the importance of supporting our industry and giving back to the community that supports our businesses. Those are lessons that he passed on to me, and I am very proud to follow in his footsteps.”

Richardson previously served as TRSA vice-chair from 2018–2020. Under her leadership, Shasta Linen Supply, a fourth-generation commercial laundry company founded in 1923, has earned Hygienically Clean Healthcare and Food Service certifications, as well as the Clean Green certification for environmental stewardship. The company serves restaurants, healthcare, and hotels in Sacramento and the San Joaquin Valley.

Richardson is active in the Sacramento community, serving as a board member of the Center for Advancing Pain Relief at the University of California, Davis, School of Medicine. She recently joined the Board of Directors of El Dorado Savings Bank and is a past volunteer of Women’s Empowerment, a nonprofit organization helping homeless women in the Sacramento area. She has served on TRSA’s Board of Directors for the past seven years and has been active in various TRSA task forces and committees, including the TRSA Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee.

Additional Officers and Directors

• Jim Kearns, Officer-Vice Chair, Executive Vice President, CFO, and CAO, Alsco Inc., Salt Lake City, UT
• Randy Bartsch, Officer-Treasurer, CEO, Ecotex Healthcare Linen Services Corp., Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
• Vicky Cayetano, Director, President, Hawaii region, United Laundry Services Inc., Honolulu, HI
• Liz Remillong, Director, Vice President, Strategic Alliances, Crothall Laundry Services, Scottsdale, AZ
• Steve Sintros, Director, CEO, UniFirst Corp., Wilmington, MA

Officers are elected to one two-year term, and Directors serve a three-year term with eligibility for a second three-year term. Dan Farnsworth, Vice President of Sales and Marketing at Leonard Automatics Inc. in Denver, NC, was elected to represent Supplier Partner companies for a three-year term.

Due to travel limitations, the elections were held via mail-in and electronic balloting in September, with confirmation on October 22.

TRSA Board Representation

The TRSA Board represents a diverse membership of over 160 linen, uniform, and facility services companies in North America, as well as nearly 40 companies operating outside of North America. TRSA membership also includes nearly 140 Supplier Partners offering innovative equipment, chemicals, linens, uniforms, and other products and services.

Additional members serving on the TRSA Board include:

• Johanna Ames, President, Ames Linen Service, Cortland, NY
• Brad Drummond, COO, Aramark Uniform and Career Apparel, Burbank, CA
• P.J. Dempsey, President, Dempsey Uniform and Linen Supply Inc., Jessup, PA
• Robert (Bob) G. Dudley, President, APPEARA, Norfolk, NE
• Scott Finkelstein, Co-President, Ace Uniform Services Inc., Baltimore, MD
• Tyler Fowler, President, M+A Matting, LaGrange, GA
• Roger Harris, President & CEO, Metro Linen, McKinney, TX
• Jose Luis Jacques, CEO, LAVARTEX SAPI de CV, Miguel Hidalgo, México
• Juha Laurio, President & CEO, Lindström Group, Helsinki, Finland
• Dan Sanchez, Vice President, Corporate Sales, Medline Textiles, Mundelein, IL
• Chris Sander, Industry Relations Ambassador, Johnson Service Group PLC, Preston Brook, UK
• Joe Sullivan, Spotless Facility Services Pty Ltd., Melbourne, Australia
• James (Jim) Vaudreuil, President & CEO, Huebsch Services, Eau Claire, WI

Bylaws Revision on Suppliers

In other action, the TRSA Board of Directors unanimously voted to amend the TRSA Bylaws to better reflect the importance of vendor/suppliers by changing the membership category from “Associate” to “Supplier Partner.” This change was ratified by a two-thirds vote of active operator members via mail-in and electronic balloting in September.

To further enhance the value of industry suppliers, TRSA has created a new “Supplier Council” to replace the former Associate Committee model. The Supplier Council will provide Supplier Partners with an expanded role in advocacy and association governance.