The Evergreen Marketing Group has recognized five distributor members and five manufacturer partners as 2020 Member or Preferred Supplier of the Year. The awards were presented during the general session of Evergreen’s annual conference held in Orlando, Florida, March 23 – 25, 2021.

Earning distinction as 2020 Distributor Members of the Year were the following:
• Colony Hardware Corp. of Orange, Connecticut (Tier 1) (www.colonyhardware.com)
• American Producers Supply of Marietta, Ohio (Tier 2) (www.americanproducers.com)
• Darragh Company of Little Rock, Arkansas (Tier 3) (www.darraghcompany.com)
• Jobsite Supply of Indianapolis (Tier 4) (www.jobsitesupply.com)
• Whitehead Hardware Co., Div. of Miller Hardware of Valdosta, Georgia (Tier 5) (www.whiteheadindustrial.com)

Earning distinction as 2019 Preferred Suppliers of the Year were the following:
• Milwaukee Tool (Tier 1) (www.milwaukeetool.com)
• JPW Industries (Tier 2) (https://www.jpwindustries.com)
• Radians, Inc. (Tier 3) (www.radians.com)
• Apex Tool Group (Tier 4) (www.apextoolgroup.com)
• SENCO (Tier 5) (www.senco.com)

The Board also established a new award called the CEO Award of Excellence to recognize the demonstrated commitment of an Evergreen Member or Preferred Supplier in a number of areas including diversity, inclusion, sustainability, and an unwavering support of the group and the overall tool and fastener industry. The new honor was awarded to Stanley Black & Decker (www.stanleyblackanddecker.com).

Evergreen also honored 14 professional development recipients at its annual conference. Eleven others were recognized for achieving their next Diamond Level. Evergreen recognized four individuals as Evergreen Certified Tool Specialist and another 10 individuals as Evergreen Certified Operations Specialists.

The 13 individuals earned initial certification by completing a multi-year training and education program that included completion of 137.5 hours of continuing education covering product, applications and selling skills. To achieve a Diamond Level, the professional must first become certified and then complete another 52.5 hours of professional development and have a teaching experience. There are nine Diamond Levels available in the program.

Becoming an Evergreen Certified Operations Specialist requires more than 120 hours of training in areas such as purchasing, inventory management, human resources and operations. Becoming an Evergreen Safety Specialist requires nearly 70 hours of specialized training in safety products and applications.

Achieving their first Diamond Level were the following:
• Andrew Green, American Producers Supply (Marietta, Ohio)
• Loretta Collins, Darragh Company (Little Rock, Arkansas)
• Joey George, Edge Construction Supply (Spokane, Washington)
• Katie Lancelle, Lincoln Contractors Supply (Milwaukee)
• Chuck Andreas, Lincoln Contractors Supply (Milwaukee)

Earning their second Diamond Level were the following:
• Dan Gust, Lincoln Contractors Supply (Milwaukee)
• Dan Steinbrecher, Lincoln Contractors Supply (Milwaukee)

Earning their third Diamond Level were the following:
• William Smith, Acme Tools (Grand Forks, North Dakota)
• Keith Turtenwald, Lincoln Contractors Supply (Milwaukee)
• James Samuelson, Lincoln Contractors Supply (Milwaukee)

Earning his ninth Diamond Level was the following:
• Eric Steinbrecher, Lincoln Contractors Supply (Milwaukee)

The following sales professionals earned their initial certification:
• Joe Green, Carson’s Nut-Bolt & Tool (Portland)
• Jeff Deinhammer, Lincoln Contractors Supply (Milwaukee)
• Brad Etzel, Lincoln Contractors Supply (Milwaukee)
• Jessie Lyon, Lincoln Contractors Supply (Milwaukee)

“There are now 425 sales professionals in the tool and fastener industry who have earned the designation as Evergreen certified,” said Evergreen CEO Kevin Higginbotham. “Through this program they have demonstrated their commitment to this industry and their own professional development.”

Evergreen Certified Tool Specialists earn the right to wear a championship-style gold ring or a handsome, custom-made gold watch. Following initial recognition, sales professionals build toward the Diamond Levels by taking additional classes and workshops designed to sharpen their skills further.

Evergreen also launched a certification process for employees in the operations side of a distributor’s business. Operations certification requires 120 hours of professional development.

Earning operations certification this year included the following:
• Brandon Hunter, Acme Construction Supply (Portland)
• Andrew Green, American Producers (Marietta, Ohio)
• Royce Mullins, Darragh Company (Little Rock, Arkansas)
• Jose Vasquez, Darragh Company (Little Rock, Arkansas)
• Bill Diel, Lincoln Contractors Supply (Milwaukee)
• Steve Klocko, Lincoln Contractors Supply (Milwaukee)
• Josh Pavich, Lincoln Contractors Supply (Milwaukee)
• Steve Sundby, Lincoln Contractors Supply (Milwaukee)
• Mike Gott, Tool & Anchor (Denver)
• Joey Ortega, Tool & Anchor (Denver)