The Women of the Year Awards include the “Auto Care Woman of the Year,” “Auto Care Woman of Excellence,” “Female Shop Owner of the Year,” and new this year, “Female Shop Employee of the Year” and “Women in Auto Care Champion of the Year.”
The winners of the 2022 Women of the Year Awards are:
Auto Care Woman of the Year: Kim Nolan, Senior Vice President, Traditional Market, BBB Industries
Auto Care Woman of Excellence: Kathleen Long, Chief Revenue Officer, RepairPal
Female Shop Owner of the Year: Kristi Hudson, Co-Owner, Troy Auto Care II
Female Shop Employee of the Year: Megan Dineff, Manager, Ervine’s Auto Repair & Grand Rapids Hybrid and EV
Women in Auto Care Champion of the Year: Tanya Hunt, Commercial Project Manager, BBB Industries
“Each year since the inception of the Women in Auto Care awards, our group of nominations grows exponentially,” said Jessica Toliuszis, chair, Women in Auto Care. “This year, we saw the largest group of finalists Women in Auto Care has ever received. Our judges had the nearly impossible task of awarding only one woman in each category. Adding new accolades, like shop team member and champion, expands our impact and our ability to celebrate the incredible talent in the automotive aftermarket.
“This group of women distinguished themselves through their integrity, unselfish commitment and high level of performance within our industry,” Toliuszis continues. “I want to especially acknowledge Rhonda Young from Kukui who sits on our executive committee as our award chair. Behind the scenes, Rhonda works tirelessly to coordinate nominations, applications, interviews and judging panels. None of this is possible without Rhonda’s commitment to elevating our Women in Auto Care community.”
Kim Nolan serves as senior vice president of sales, U.S. traditional market at BBB Industries, LLC. In 2020, Nolan was selected into the inaugural class of AMN’s Women at the Wheel as recognition of her success over the course of her 30-year career in the industry. Nolan is a champion of mentoring and has enjoyed mentoring not only within her own company but with other organizations at a high school level. She joined the Women in Auto Care Executive Committee in January, leading Member Engagement.
“I thought this would be my opportunity to give back to the community that has given me so much, a way to focus on creating impact,” Nolan states. She is passionate about creating genuine relationships with customers and colleagues alike. Nolan explains, “As a team leader my values as role model include integrity, getting to the heart of what really matters, setting high expectations for myself and my team, making sure others have a voice, giving constructive feedback and showing gratitude for hard work.” Her path from small family business owner to successful senior leader at BBB Industries has been an inspiration to many.
Kathleen Long serves as chief revenue officer at RepairPal. Long participates broadly in Women in Auto Care, Women in Automotive, ASCCA, MWACA, ATI and ATE. You will often find her speaking or training at industry events. Long has acted as a mentor for Women Unlimited and Chief, which allows her to represent the automotive industry in a broader professional context. She is an advocate of DEI and has contributed inclusive hiring and onboarding processes and documentation to benefit other organizations through CADIA (Center for Automotive Diversity, Inclusion and Advancement) and dott., some of which has been adopted as part of their curriculums.
Long comments, “I plan to use the visibility of this award to continue paving the way for women and minorities. That work is never done, and it needs all our collective effort to make forward progress.”
Kristi Hudson is co-owner of Troy Auto Care II. The Troy Auto Group is comprised of three locations and nearly 50 employees, with the original location opening in 1958. Their shop motto is, “We are all one big family,” across all locations, from employees to customers. In addition to the daily shop operations of one location, Hudson directs the training of staff at all locations, as well as the execution of their apprenticeship program. She is a local board member of Oakland Schools Technical Campus, where she works to increase enrollment numbers, especially among young women. Hudson has spoken at many industry events, has been featured on Remarkable Results podcasts and serves on the NAPA AutoCare National Advisory Council.
“Serving on the council has provided me with another stage to share my knowledge and confidence with other shop owners across the country,” she says. Hudson has made a practice of helping others through mentoring, educating on the opportunities in the automotive industry and holding Women’s Car Care Clinics annually. Hudson states, “Passion is what drives me. Passion to make a difference in the automotive industry is what has helped get me to where I am today. And now that, the spark has been reignited through Women in Auto Care, I am ready to share that passion with the world!”
Megan Dineff serves as vice president of customer experience at Ervine’s Auto Repair & Grand Rapids Hybrid and EV. Ervine’s Auto Repair & Grand Rapids Hybrid and EV is a family-owned auto repair shop with a mission to elevate the auto repair industry and let every motorist know, knowledgeable or not, about their vehicle and that they have professionals on their side.
While the list of Dineff’s responsibilities is quite long, she says, “My number one role is to provide extraordinary customer service. I am helping customers through what could be a very stressful time for them. Helping people comes naturally to me and I’m very good at it.” Dineff received the 2019 Ratchet + Wrench All-Star Award and the 2020 Auto Care Association’s 4 for the Future Impact Award. She has served as a Champion for Women in Auto Care and has been a member of the YANG Advisory Council. Dineff is very involved in her community and enjoys being a brand ambassador for her family business.
Tanya Hunt serves as commercial project manager at BBB Industries LLC. Hunt acts a champion for Women in Auto Care. She has worked tirelessly with the Women in Auto Care Committee on making the Mentoring platform more user friendly, keeping it up to date with all current events and mentoring activity. She is always the first one to raise her hand to help with projects from auction donations, sponsors and local connect events. On top of the volunteer work she does for Women in Auto Care, she co-founded Corporate Citizenship Committee (CCC) at BBB industries where she leads each BBB office in volunteering time and donating money globally. The CCC heads up events for Earth Day and Reman Day, food drives, blood drives and Adopt A Family for Christmas. Hunt truly encompasses the volunteer spirit in every aspect of her life.
