Date: April 12, 2023
Category: Chapter News
For what seems like a couple years now, Mark Freer has been making noises that sure sounded like retirement and in the Fall of last year after 43 years with ElectroCoatings, he did just that. Congratulations Mark!
Mark started his career in metal finishing with Electro-Coatings as a plater but soon moved to a management position in ECI’s Indianapolis facility. From there it’s been all Houston. After a short time as a supervisor here, he was moved to the General Managers spot then after a corporate re-org his title changed to President, ElectroCoatings, Inc, Texas Division.
After he stepped away, I’ve called and found him all over the country enjoying the views and spending time with his 3 children Rachael, a freelance museum curator living in Estes Park, CO, Daniel, VP of Engineering for Yellowfin Boats in Florida and daughter Diana, a nurse here in our medical center who’s currently implementing a new computer system for their massive complex.
Over the years I’ve known Mark to own and ride very cool Harley’s and drive fast and even more cool sports cars. Today it’s a bicycle a new Mercedes Airstream van but humorously when we most recently spoke, he was healing from a broken arm and couldn’t drive the van! He laughed that after all those years on motorcycles, to have his first crash and injury riding a bicycle along Buffalo Bayou seemed a bit ironic!
Thanks to the generosity of Dan Dunnigan, Mark was able to bring Peter Johansen from Abrite to replace him and like Mark, he’s a natural and a perfect fit for ECI. Thank you for your friendship, for all of your behind the scene’s support for our Association and for your constant positive and upbeat ways. I’m so proud and happy for you Mark, congratulations!
J. Kelly Mowry
TAMF President
Date: November 3, 2021
Category: Chapter News
Dear Friends;
I write today to thank Jeff Fodge and Joel Dean for their years of service to the Industry and your Association. They are world class individuals who spent untold hours over the years making our Association and all of our businesses stronger and better.
After 27 years of service Jeff started hinting that ‘this year’ would be his last on the board, but of course we weren’t going to let him off that easy. We told him that he could leave if he found a replacement for himself and after lot of convincing, son Matt stepped up to the plate and became our first 3rd generation board member.
Jeff started in our industry as a kid plating belt buckles with his soon to be father-in-law Glen Gurley. He fell in love with Glen’s beautiful daughter Glenda and the rest is history. Together they raised their wonderful family and after losing Glen to cancer, Jeff filled his board spot and built Gleco to the industry force that it is today. We’ve been so fortunate to have Jeff as a board member. His kindness and generosity combined with well thought out answers to important industry questions will be missed. Again, thank you so much my friend!
In 2004, Joel joined the board after his business partner and brother-in-law Corky Hall passed him the baton. By then, Joel was a seasoned metal finisher after starting with the company in 1975. Before then, Joel worked as many as 3 jobs to support his new family but after his first child was born, grandaddy Ed Hall put an end to that. Joel was going to work for the company…it wasn’t a question! Joel started from the ground floor and worked his way up to management and ownership. Even though he’s off the board, he’s just as likely to call me today with a great association idea as when he was on the board, and he does so regularly. He was the 3rd family member from the Courter-Hall Company to be on the TAMF Board and like Jeff, he’ll be missed. You can always count on Joel for his great smile, creative ideas, conservative and prudent decisions and for always putting his friends and family first. Thank you Joel for being my friend and for all your years of service on the TAMF Board!
Kelly Mowry
TAMF President
GAC
Tagged: Jeff Fodge, Joel Dean
Date: June 4, 2020
Category: TAMF Members
As long as I can remember being involved with TAMF, Howard Loeser has been there. After 45 years on the job, Howard is retiring at the end of this month. He’s one of the nicest guys a person could know, he’s always wearing a kind smile, has a quiet presence and makes everyone know that he cares about them. He’s a good friend. When we visited recently, Howard talked about the time he’s been with IMF and the industry… 45 years… he said ‘it was a good run’.
While Howard was at the University of Texas, his father sold the company and with his degree in Archaeology and Chemistry, he had no plans to enter the industry. A year before graduation though, the new owners of IMF were failing and Mr. Loeser took the business back. Still with no want to do more than help ‘pops’ out some, Howard started at Industrial Metal Finishing and made a life long career of it! He remembers his first job as their truck driver, picking up 55 gallon drums of fuel for their forklifts, driving the old Ford pickup. From there, Howard moved to the shop floor and learned the business from the ground up, successfully running IMFCO with brother Bruce and is so proud to be transitioning the company to the 3rd generation, son-in-law Justin Blumberg and nephew Travis Loeser.
In reflecting over his good run, we talked about changes and like always, it was all good. He focused on Quality and Environmental programs and commented on the vast improvements in both, not only at his company but in the industry as a whole and what a good thing that was. They innovated but remained much the same company over the years and always fought to keep up to their ‘we can do it’ company motto.
Having served as TAMF President for at least a couple terms, Howard remains a huge fan of our little Association. He leaned on it heavily in the 80’s when things were crazy with the environmental side of our industry and with the friendships made through TAMF and NAMF in Texas and Nationwide, there was always someone to reach out to with questions and always a friend to visit with at local and national events.
He’s leaving his IMF family at the end of the month but will only be a will phone call away for any of us who just want to reach out. Congratulations and farewell my good friend!
jkelly
Tagged: Howard Loeser
Date: February 6, 2020
Category: Meeting Notes
If you were unable to make our most recent Chapter meeting in Houston, you missed a great meal, meeting topic and fellowship. Super ED Carolyn Vernier and Pappasito’s Cantina South Loop nailed supper and our meeting topic while scary, was as much as we could pull together on catastrophic fires. Planning for the worst with your environmental team with oversight by one of our talented Sponsor Member environmental companies, proper insurance coverage and response practice is what I pulled from the presentation. It’s something we never want to go through but being prepared is the key. From a National perspective, it’s all about PFOS/PFOA these days. Drinking water standards, proposed discharge limits and legislation and NASF response to all of the above.
Our April 22nd meeting in Dallas will be held at Top Golf and should be super fun! Finally, out National Management Conference in Key Largo is almost upon us! It’s at the Ocean Reef Club, hosted by Collette and Mitchell Marsh and should be spectacular! See y’all soon!
Date: July 31, 2019
Category: TAMF Members
TAMF recently updated its by-laws to more closely match NASF and in doing so, our strong Contributing Sponsor membership base are now officially TAMF members and eligible for election to the Board of Directors.
In our most recent Board Election, three CS Members, Joelie Zak, Owner, Scientific Control Laboratories, Charles Epperson, President, Epperson Environmental Group and, Dan Dunnigan, President, A Brite Company. They bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to the Board from a perspective that TAMF has never had before. Looking at the Association from both the finishers and suppliers perspective causes us to be a much better organization.
Additionally, Mr Dean McCowen of Micron Industries joined the board and while he’s on the job shop side of the table now, Dean’s spent years on the supplier side and brings the best of both worlds to the table. Our current BOD roster is:
President: J Kelly Mowry, Gull Industries, Armoloy of Texas
Tim Glanzman, Turn-Key Coatings
Secretary: Jeff Fodge, Gleco
Treasurer: Brady McClellan, S&S Industries
Directors:
- Rob Foster, High Tech Finishing
- Andy Schumacher, The Schumacher Companies
- Joelie Zak, Scientific Control Laboratories
- Charles Epperson, Epperson Environmental Group
- Dan Dunnigan, A Brite Company
Executive Director: Carolyn Vernier, Vernier Sales
Date: July 31, 2019
Category: Meeting Notes
If you missed our April Meeting, you missed a great time at Top Golf in Houston. Everyone enjoyed a wonderful buffet dinner with amazing injectable donut holes for dessert followed by a friendly competition, with a few people winning some nice prizes. Mickey Cochren, with Plating Specialists Inc., took home the big money and Julie Richardson with High Tech Finishing enjoyed a candy-filled Golden Egg. No matter where you placed, a good time with old and new friends is always welcome!
Mickey Cochren, Plating Specialists, Inc. and Julie Richardson, High Tech Finishing Celebrate their award prizes at Top Golf
Texas Association of Metal Finishers is an official chapter of