ARA members approve nominees to the ARA Board of Directors

Following are the members who will join the American Rental Association (ARA) board of directors in 2024.

	ARA president-elect Robert H. Pedersen, president and CEO, A Tool Shed, Santa Cruz, Calif.
	ARA associate member director Marti Wenzler, strategic account manager, Lawson Products, Chicago
	ARA Region Six director Steve Houser, general manager, U.S. Rents-It, Jefferson City, Mo.
	ARA Region Seven director Maureen Harkness, CERP, managing director, Cre8ive Event Rentals, Tempe, Ariz.
	ARA Region Eight director Sam Castillo, senior account manager, Tates Rents, Boise, Idaho
	ARA Region 10 director Kelly Brincheski, general manager, Collective Event Rentals, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

“Leading the association requires a very diverse set of skills and a lot of passion for our industry. It is critical that we get the right group of people assembled to represent the needs of rental operators and shape the programs that benefit our members. It is a tremendous honor to serve the rental industry on the ARA national board but it’s only a three-year term, so we are constantly looking for special folks that are up to the task. We replace a third of the board every year and candidates for the open seats are evaluated against specific criteria that is developed by the board. This process has served us well and having a strong board is the primary reason the association continues to reach new milestones in terms of membership and more importantly member engagement,” said Tony Conant, ARA CEO.

Current president-elect Jeff Crotto, CERP, who will assume the office of president in 2024, has named Dan Fielitz, to the board position of Equipment Rental Shared Interest Group (SIG) chair to represent that ARA member segment for a three-year term. Fielitz is president of General Rent-All, in Massillon, Ohio, an ARA member since 1986.

Crotto also has appointed two ARA board members to serve a one-year term on the 2024-2025 Executive Committee. Appointed to serve are Robert Copley, CERP, ARA Region Five director and Brian Richardson, ARA Region Two director.

Copley who has served on the ARA Board of Directors since 2023, is sales manager of Event Essentials, Windsor, Wis. Richardson who has served on the ARA Board of Directors since 2022, is president of L & A Tent Rentals in Trenton, N.J. Copley and Richardson will join Crotto and Pedersen on the Executive Committee, along with current president Steve Mau who assumes the board chair position in 2024.

The following officer and directors will complete their terms on the board in the spring of 2024:

• Scott Irwin, ARA board chair, and president and co-owner, Delux Rental, Ypsilanti, Mich.
• Mary Crosslin, ARA Associate Member director, and co-president and chief operating officer, Alert Rental Software, Colorado Springs, Colo.
• Doug Haas, ARA Region Six director, and president and CEO, Crown Rental, Burnsville, Minn.
• Andrew Heesacker, ECP-SM, ARA Region Seven director, and president and CEO, Arvada Rent-Alls, Arvada, Colo.
• Steve Ricci, ARA Region Eight director, and president and owner, Bigfork Rentals, Bigfork, Mont.
• Angie Venekamp, ECP-SM, ARA Region 10 director and general manager, Rental Network, Squamish, British Columbia, Canada
• John Jeanguenat, ARA Equipment Rental Shared Interest Group (SIG) co-chair and president, RentalMax, Carol Stream, Ill.