DETROIT — Ally Financial Inc. and Time on Friday released a list of 40 nominees for the 2021 Time Dealer of the Year Award. The winner will be announced during the National Automobile Dealers Association’s virtual show in February.
Each year, executives from state and metro dealer associations throughout the country nominate a car dealer from their particular region. A panel of faculty members from the Tauber Institute for Global Operations at the University of Michigan will select four finalists representing each of NADA’s Northeast, South, Midwest and West regions. This panel also selects the national Dealer of the Year. The finalists are chosen at the show, and the winner is chosen shortly after.
This will be the 10th year that Ally Financial, one of the largest U.S. auto lenders, sponsors the award. Each of the 40 nominees will receive $1,000 that Ally will donate to a 501(c)(3) charity of their choice. Finalists will receive an additional $5,000 for their favorite charities, and the winner will receive an additional $10,000 for donation.
The award has honored car dealers for more than 50 years, but this year’s crop is special, Doug Timmerman, president of Ally Auto Finance, said in a statement.
“This year’s nominees have had to navigate extraordinary circumstances while maintaining their businesses and doing everything they can to support and lift up their local communities,” he said. “Our country has endured tremendous hardship due to the effects of COVID-19, and this year’s nominees stepped up in ways we’ve never seen before, playing a critical role in bolstering their communities throughout the pandemic.”
The 2021 nominees are:
- Christine Alicandro Karnolt, Marty’s-Buick-GMC, Kingston, Mass.
- Daniel Banister, Banister Nissan of Chesapeake, Chesapeake, Va.
- John Barker, Two Rivers Ford, Mount Juliet, Tenn.
- Larry Battison, Battison Honda, Oklahoma City
- Chuck Bierbach, Elko Motor Co., Elko, Nev.
- Mark Boniol, Mark Dodge, Lake Charles, La.
- Sam Burns, Burns Chevrolet Gaffney, Gaffney, S.C.
- Jack Caldwell, Caldwell Toyota, Conway, Ark.
- Scott Cargill, White’s Frontier Motors, Gillette, Wyo.
- Jonathan Chariff, South Motors Automotive Group, Palmetto Bay, Fla.
- David Conant, Norm Reeves Honda Superstore, Cerritos, Calif.
- Dominic Conicelli, Conicelli Autoplex, Conshohocken, Pa.
- Timothy Crenwelge, Crenwelge Motors, Kerrville, Texas
- Jamie Darvish, DARCARS Automotive Group, Silver Spring, Md.
- Don Davidson, Sears Imported Autos, Minnetonka, Minn.
- Christina Dawkins, Co’s BMW Center, Loveland, Colo.
- Rick DeSilva Jr., Liberty Subaru, Emerson, N.J.
- Jim Fisher, Jim Fisher Volvo Cars Portland, Portland, Ore.
- Omnia Fowler, Modern Automotive Group, Boone, N.C.
- Kathleen Gaddie, Ryan Family Dealerships, Minot, N.D.
- Steve Gates, Toyota South, Richmond, Ky.
- Chris Hemmersmeier, Jerry Seiner Chevrolet, Salt Lake City
- Todd Hill, Tri-State Ford-Lincoln, Maryville, Mo.
- Michael Keppel, Acura of Maui, Kahului, Hawaii
- Michael Kopp, North Country Ford, Lancaster, N.H.
- Harry Larson, Larson Motors Inc., Nebraska City, Neb.
- Marvin McCord, McCord’s Vancouver Toyota, Vancouver, Wash.
- Mike Molstead, Mike Molstead Motors Inc., Charles City, Iowa
- J. Thad Naquin, Tom Naquin Chevrolet-Cadillac-Nissan, Elkhart, Ind.
- Lane Nichols, Gene’s Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram, Fairbanks, Alaska
- Don Patnoe, Liberty Chrysler-Jeep-Fiat, Rapid City, S.D.
- Jose Pozos, Wichita Falls Ford, Wichita Falls, Texas
- Patrick Preston, Preston Superstore, Burton, Ohio
- Tim Redding Sr., Swainsboro Ford-Lincoln, Swainsboro, Ga.
- Jim Stanger, Helena Motors, Helena, Mont.
- Mike Sullivan, Lexus Santa Monica, Santa Monica, Calif.
- Juliana Curran Terian, Rallye Motors, Roslyn, N.Y.
- J.R. Toothman, Toothman Ford, Grafton, W.Va.
- Michael Van Veckhoven, New South Ford, Meridian, Miss.
- Jeff Williams, Williams AutoWorld, Lansing, Mich.
