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Mike Swift Becomes President
of the
Automotive Recyclers Association
In his first remarks as ARA President, Swift urged all
members to put forth the effort to fuel the passion
that he saw firsthand during his travels to profes-
sional automotive recycler facilities this past year.
He encouraged all to "live the dream" so that ARA
can remain strong and continue to be an invaluable
resource to its members. He promoted the ARA
CAR and Green Recycled Parts Programs as great
branding tools for the industry. He ended his speech
by reciting the lyrics to the leading song in the
Broadway play,
Man of La Man-
cha, "To Dream
the Impossible
Dream," and chal-
lenged his col-
leagues to make
the impossible
dream.....possible.
During the evening
program, Swift rec-
ognized the ARA
staff, his mother,
wife, children as
well as close fami-
ly friends from Io-
wa who travelled
to Charlotte for his inaugural ceremony. Swift credits
his Dad - his hero - for teaching him the business
from the ground up, starting in 1979.
He hopes to carry on his Dad's legacy by giving his
all to the ARA Presidency - working with his fellow
recyclers and ARA staff to increase market
opportunities for professional automotive
recyclers. His colleagues know Swift as a
leader who empowers people to get things
done so it should be a very busy year.
Swift served as the IAR past Vice-President
and Presidents, is a current board member
of the Iowa Automotive Recyclers and the
Chairperson for Government Affairs in the state. In
addition, Swift's Trails End Auto Recycling was the
first yard in Iowa to be I-CARE certified. On the ARA
side, Swift was the regional director in 2009 and
2011and the Regional Director Chair from 2010-
2012.
Since 1943, the Automotive Recyclers Association
(ARA) represents an industry dedicated to the effi-
cient removal and reuse of “green” automotive
parts, and the
proper recy-
cling of inoper-
able motor ve-
hicles. ARA
represents the
interests of
over 4,500 au-
to recycling
facilities in the
United States
and fourteen
other countries
around the
world.
With programs
such as the
Certified Auto-
motive Recycler Program (CAR), Green Recycled
Parts, and other partnerships, ARA members con-
tinue to provide consumers with quality, low-cost
alternatives for vehicle replacement parts, while pre-
serving our environment for a “greener” tomorrow.
To learn more about the Association,
visit ARA’s Home Page at www.a-r-
a.orgor call (571) 208-0428.
Page 10
Recyclers News Press
Photo courtesy of ARA