COLORADO
Mitchell 1 has scheduled a Shop Management System Training Workshop for July 24-26 in Denver at the Sheraton Denver West. The workshop is designed for repair shops that have been using the Mitchell 1 system for six months or more. John Dwulet and Tim McDonnell of Mitchell 1 will conduct the training course that's scheduled to cover the functionally of the OnDemand5 Manager system, advanced setup, inventory, reporting, as well as integration with aftermarket cataloging and customer retention marketing (CRM). For more information, visit www.buymitchell1.com/form/m1users.htm.
Specialty Products Co. (SPC), a manufacturer of suspension and alignment parts and tools, has scheduled a "Do It With The Pros" open house and car show for Aug. 16 at its facility at 4045 Specialty Place in Longmont. The event will feature discussion of the SPC Performance line of suspension products designed for racing, drifting, or rallying, said Vickie Wheeler, SPC graphics and advertising manager. SPC will provide lunch and entertainment. For more information, visit www.spcperformance.com.
Toyo Tire USA has named John Taylor its new district manager of Division One, a territory that covers most of the western United States. Taylor has more than 15 years of sales and service in tires, wheels, custom accessories, and the car-restoration industry. That experience includes a previous stint with Toyo Tire.
Foree Tire Distributors, a tire wholesaler with locations in Gering, Neb., Denver and Colorado Springs, has teamed up with Yokohama to hold a ride and drive event in Denver at Invesco Field at Mile High on July 21. Tire dealer personnel will have the opportunity to drive a fleet of Mazda 6 vehicles fitted with Yokohama tires, said Arnold Thomas, co-owner of Foree. The daylong event will be split into morning and afternoon session. The Foree crew will also hold a golf outing July 27 at the Riverdale course in Brighton. For more information, contact Thomas at 303-320-4725.
The Rocky Mountain Fleet Management Association's (RMFMA's) Colorado Chapter held a mini-conference and tradeshow 
on June 14 at the Adams County Regional Fairgrounds in Henderson, said Gayle Patterson of RMFMA. The event featured a session on Fleet Optimization by Jim Wright, principal of Fleet Counselors; a presentation on heavy-duty hybrids conducted by Tom Brotherton of CalStart/WestStart, and a roundtable discussion on E85.
L&H Auto Body celebrated its 60th anniversary at its Wheat Ridge shop on June 14. Co-owners Larry Caldwell and Howard Caldwell were on hand for the event at which Wheat Ridge Mayor Jerry Ditullio spoke. L&H Auto Body also has locations in Erie and Minturn.
FinishMaster Automotive & Industrial Paint, a distributor of PPG, DuPont, and BASF paints, coatings, and related accessories, recently held a golf outing at the Meadows Golf Course in Littleton. Proceeds of the tournament went to the Children's Hospital and the Epilepsy Foundation, said Chris Johns, business development manager for FinishMaster.
Rick Lujan, owner of Black & White Auto in Colorado Springs, hosted a 3M I-CAR class on May 22. The event, co-sponsored by FinishMaster, drew more than 30 people, said Todd Cornell, FinishMaster district sales manager.
The Automotive Service Association of Colorado (ASA-CO) has scheduled its KEYS (Keep Educating Yourself and Staff) "Back to School" training event Aug. 23 at Lincoln Academy, 6980 Pierce St. in Arvada. The daylong training event features George Witt, who is to present "Marketing for the Independent Service Facility"; Bruce Burrows, scheduled to give training on collision repair shop management; and John Thornton, who will discuss using electronic methods to diagnose mechanical problems. For more information, contact ASA-CO Executive Director Sarah Anderson at 303-202-5231.
Zurich, a property-casualty insurance company, recently announced that the Global Automotive Aftermarket Symposium (GAAS) has awarded 20 aspiring aftermarket industry professionals $1,000 scholarships from money donated by Zurich's Direct Markets group, a provider of customized insurance products for aftermarket businesses in North America. The scholarships are funded partially by a grant from Zurich's High-Octane Scholarship Program, which is designed to address the educational needs of students looking to enter the automotive aftermarket, which encompasses many facets of parts and service. Jonathan White of Greeley was one of the recipients.
The Leadership Development Network (LDN) recently announced the winners of the 2008 LDN scholarships. The selected students will each receive a $1,000 scholarship for the 2008-2009 academic years. Elijah Allgood of Denver was one of the recipients. LDN, along with several other associations, collaborated with the GAAS Scholarship Committee to create an online scholarship resource for students planning to pursue careers in the automotive aftermarket.
The National Automotive Technicians Education Foundation (NATEF) recently awarded Casey Grinolds of Loma its Michael Busch Memorial Scholarship. Grinolds was one of two students to receive the scholarship in honor of Busch, the son of a collision repair shop owner and collision repair technology student who lost his life to cancer.
Chrysler LLC representatives and personnel from Denver-area Chrysler, Jeep, and Dodge dealers teamed up with Kaboom on June 12 to build a new playground at Johnson Elementary School at 1850 S. Irving St. in Denver. More than 200 volunteers were on hand for the event, the second of 25 playgrounds scheduled to be built by Kaboom, the Chrysler Foundation, Chrysler Financial, and Chrysler, Jeep, or Dodge dealerships across the country.
Pollard Motors, a Jeep dealership in Boulder, has hired Helen Anderson to serve as the dealership's wholesale marketing specialist. Anderson brings to the position 3.5 years of Mopar parts 
experience. One of her key objectives is to maintain high levels of customer service with mechanical and collision repair shops in Colorado.
Rush Medium Duty Truck Center, a franchise Ford and Isuzu truck dealer in 
Denver, recently hired Josh Joerns as outside salesman. Joerns said he has more than six years of heavy-duty truck parts experience, mainly in the aftermarket.
NEW MEXICO
The Automotive Service Association of Central New Mexico (ASA-CNM) held a training event June 10 at Nativo Lodge in Albuquerque, said Scott Benavidez of Mr. B's Paint & Body of Albuquerque. Barry Hughes, owner of Impact Marketing & Advertising Consultants, gave an advertising presentation to the group. His methods have worked for clients such as Zangara Dodge and Reliable Chevrolet.
In other ASA-CNM news, Scott Benavidez was recently appointed to ASA's Collision Division Operations Committee. The committee works on behalf of all ASA collision members to advance and promote the collision repair industry. Several committee projects are handled through various subcommittees, including refinish, automobile manufacturer, estimating, insurance and crash parts.
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