Headlining the many news items emanating from the annual AMOA Mid-Year Board Meeting was the election of John Pascaretti of Wolverine American, Inc., Redford, MI, as Secretary.

Traditionally within AMOA’s leadership ranks, an individual attaining the position of Secretary becomes the favorite to serve as President in four years, once he or she serves a series of one-year terms as Secretary, Treasurer, First Vice President and then President.

What makes Pascaretti’s election newsworthy and, in fact, historic, is that, if he does continue to move up in the top ranks of AMOA’s leadership and become President, he will be the first distributor in the association’s history to hold that title.

While the possibility of having a distributor as AMOA President in the year 2012 was warmly embraced by the association’s Board of Directors, so, too, was the election of other officers during the March 28-30 gathering at Amelia Island, FL.

This fall, at the close of Expo, Gary Brewer of Brewer Amusement Company, McMinnville, TN, will be the 2009-2010 AMOA President.  Donovan Fremin of Delta Music Inc., Thibodaux, LA, will become First Vice President, and Andy Shaffer of Shaffer Services, Columbus, OH, will be the new AMOA Treasurer.

Three Vice Presidents were elected at the meeting, and their terms will also commence at the end of the September 24-26, 2009 Expo in Las Vegas:

Gaines Butler, Metro Distributors, Inc., Norcross, GA; Philip D. Juckem, All Brands Vending Co., Inc., Tampa, FL; and Tony Paszkiewicz, Columbia Amusements, Inc., Baltimore, MD.

A trio of vacancies were also filled by the Board during its meeting:  John Newberry of Venco Business Music, Bland, WV, in the Director Class of 2010; and Steve Lyons, Jefferson County Amusement, Inc., Madison, IN, along with Kathy Oligmiller-Miles, Rushmore Amusement Inc., Rapid City, SD, in the Director Class of 2011.