St. Louis, Mo.—NWFA’s Industry Advocates Fund will support scholarships in honor of Jack Coates, a founder of the NWFA who died in January.
Chester Derr, Jr. and Rick Holden of Derr Flooring in Edison, N.J., and Kevin Mullany of Benchmark Wood Floors in Albuquerque, N.M., each contributed to the fund in recognition of Coates, who was the owner of Golden State Flooring and whose involvement in the NWFA and the industry was significant over the years.
“As one of the founding fathers of the NWFA and as a leader of one the preeminent wood flooring distributors in the country, it is important to recognize Jack’s achievements and to keep his name alive,” Holden said. “I hope others will join us in supporting the scholarship fund not only to honor him, but to offer educational opportunities for members of our industry.”
“The generosity and spirit of Jack Coates is reflected in these contributions that have been made on his behalf,” said Michael Martin, NWFA President and CEO. “We greatly appreciate that Chet, Rick and Kevin not only are honoring a tremendous person who made such an impact in our association and the industry, but that they are helping pay forward opportunities to others through these scholarships for NWFA education.”