John Wolz

Alan Vidinsky was elected chair of the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors at the annual meeting in January in Washington, D.C.
Vidinsky is founder and CEO of Valin Corp. of Sunnyvale, CA. He succeeds Byron Potter of Dallas (TX) Wholesale Builders Supply Inc., who takes the immediate past chair role.
The new chair-elect is Grady Rosier of McLane Co. Inc. of Temple, TX.
Andre Lacy of LDI Ltd. of Indianapolis, IN, is the new first vice chair; William Parsley, Carswell Distributing Co., Winston -Salem, NC, second vice chair; Michael Moore, Applied Industrial Technologies, Bloomfield Hills, MI, treasurer; and Tucker Jones III, Hudson Valley Paper Co., Albany, NY, secretary.
Ralph Nappi, American Machine Tool Distributors Association is the new chair of the Association Executives Council; Tim Holt, National School Supply and Equipment Association, is vice chair; and Patricia Lilly, Fernley & Fernley, is past chair.
NAW endorsed George W. Bush early in his campaign for the presidency, and the association was rewarded with a half-hour meeting in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building adjacent to the White House.
During NAWs annual January meeting in Washington, DC, a delegation met with Bush, who thanked the association for its campaign support.
Bush also spoke about his proposed national reading program.
Emphasizing one of his priorities, education reform, Bush stressed, We owe it to ourselves to have a literate workforce.
He also repeated his support for an across-the-board income tax reduction, and he drew lengthy applause from the delegation for his call for ending inheritance taxes.
NAW president Dirk Van Dongen noted that many members were very energetic supporters of the presidents agenda, so it was a privilege to have an early opportunity at which leaders of the wholesale distribution industry from across the country could express their enthusiasm for his initiatives on a whole range of issues.
NAW said it was Bushs first such gathering with a business association since taking office.