NEWS BULLETIN Maine Automobile Dealers Association 180 Civic Center Drive P. O. Box 2667 Augusta, Maine 04338-2667 DIAL 623-3882 e-mail:
[email protected] FAX 623-2318 DISTRIBUTION 2008-3 General Manager Office Manager SOUTH PARIS DEALER HONORED BY TIME MAGAZINE Parts Manager Sales Manager Service Manager Gene Benner, President and Treasurer of Bessey Motor Sales, the Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep dealership in South Paris, was recently honored for his nomination for the 2008 TIME Magazine Dealer of the Year award. Gene was one of a select group of dealers from across the country recognized at this year’s National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) convention in San Francisco. The announcement of this year’s Dealer of the Year finalists was made at the opening business meeting of the convention, which was attended by more than 25,000 individuals involved in the automobile industry. The TIME Magazine Dealer of the Year award is the automobile industry’s most prestigious and highly coveted award for car dealers. Recipients are among the nation’s most successful auto dealers. However, they must also demonstrate a long-standing commitment to effective community service. Gene was chosen to represent the Maine Automobile Dealers Association in the national competition –- one of only 51 automobile dealers, from more than 19,500 nationwide, nominated for the 39 th annual award. The award is sponsored by TIME Magazine in association with Goodyear Tire, and in cooperation with NADA. A panel of faculty members from the University of Michigan Graduate School of Business Administration selects each finalist. A Maine native, all New England wide receiver at the University of Maine-Orono, and a onetime NFL draft pick of the Cleveland Browns, Gene spent 13 years as a teacher and coach before entering the automobile business.