The 2007 Gala honorees:
Phil Gutierrez, CEO & Chairman of Abbey Carpet,
Julian Saul, President & CEO of Queen Carpet, and
Alan Lorberbaum, founder and former president of Aladdin Mills
Lifetime Achievement Awards Recipients:
Larry Nagle, the former executive v.p. of Burlington Industries and president of Color Tile
Al Wahnon, the publisher of Floor Covering News
Howard Brodsky and Alan Greenberg, co-chairman of CCA Global
Bud Seretean, the former chairman of Coronet Industries
Peter Spiirer, former chairman of Horizon Industries.
Floor Daily - By Frank O'Neill
Distribution Evolution - June 2007
The floorcovering industry has changed dramatically in the past two decades, but one of the more subtle changes—the disappearance of grand industry events, events that bring together people from every sector of our industry—might have gone unnoticed except for one extraordinary evening in April. That’s when the industry got together in New York City and threw a party, a magnificent party that brings back fond memories of the grand events we used to have in the 1980s.
The party was the 2007 FCIF Gala. The place was Cipriani’s, a monumental restaurant right across from Grand Central Station. More than 350 industry execs and their wives gathered there to honor the latest inductees into the WFCA’s Hall of Fame, along with six others who received Lifetime Achievement awards. At the same time, the organizers were able to raise more money than ever for the Floor Covering Industry Foundation.
What better way to raise money for a great cause? If you’re not yet aware of the FCIF, you should be, because it’s your industry’s charity, here to help you and your colleagues if you should ever have a catastrophic illness. It was started in 1980 by the late Walter Guinan, Al Wahnon, Danny Schoen, Emmett Dineen and Howard Reed. Over the course of the years, it’s raised $3 million to help more than 150 people from our industry.
This year, for the first time, three exceptional people were inducted into the Hall of Fame: Julian Saul, the former president of Shaw Industries; Phil Gutierrez, the chairman of Abbey Carpet; and Allen Lorberbaum, the late chairman of Aladdin Mills.
The FCIF also honored six people with Lifetime Achievement Awards. They are Larry Nagle, the former executive v.p. of Burlington Industries and president of Color Tile; Al Wahnon, the publisher of Floor Covering News; Howard Brodsky and Alan Greenberg, co-chairmen of CCA Global; Bud Seretean, the former chairman of Coronet Industries, which is now part of Beaulieu; and Peter Spiirer, former chairman of Horizon Industries.
Larry Nagle and the committee that put together this year’s bash at Cipriani’s also deserve a special award for creating an extraordinary event, one I’ll remember for a long time.
Click here to make a donation to FCIF!
