CEoY Previous Winners

Pioneer Award Winner

Pioneer Award
John & Jeff Whiteman
Empire Southwest

 Executive of the Year
General Contractor

Barry Chasse
CHASSE

Executive of the Year
Subcontractor

Jeff Johnson
Trafficade

Emerging Executive
of the Year

Justin Martin
Corbins Electric

Best Under the Sun
General Member

Jennifer Hopper
      DPR

Best Under the Sun 
Associate Member

Elise Thorpe
Lovitt & Touche

General - Lynne Pace
DL Withers

Associate - Stephan King
Stephan King CPA

General - Ryan Evans

Associate - Taylor Brockbank

Dave Elrod,
Regional Manager
DPR Construction, SW Region

Jim Jacobs,
President
CORE Construction

Terry Keenen, CEO
Climatec Building
Technology Services

General - Jim Bracy

Associate - Michelle Grider

2011 Construction Executive of the Year Finalists

Jeff Banker
President
Banker Insulation

Jerry Barnier
President
Suntec Concrete

Ken Kortman
President
Kortman Electric

2011 Best Under the Sun General Member

2011 Best Under the Sun Associate Member

Kevin Burnett,
The Sundt Companies, Inc.

Debby Anderson,
Minard-Ames Insurance Services

2010 CONSTRUCTION EXECUTIVE of the YEAR
AWARD WINNER

Marcia Veidmark,
President & CEO
Specialized Services Company

2010 Construction Executive of the Year Finalists

Martin “Marty” Alvarez,
CEO
Sun Eagle Corp.

Roberta “Sissie” Roberts Shank,
President & CEO
Chas Roberts Air Conditioning, Inc.

Jerry Wyatt,
Principal/Director of
Operations (Posthumously)
Lang Wyatt Construction

Joseph P. Schwan, Double AA Builders, Ltd.
Arizona Construction Industry Pioneer Award Winner - 2010

2010 Best Under the Sun General Member

2010 Best Under the Sun Associate Member

John Corcoran, CICPAC

Michelle Giesen, Accrued Performance

2009 CONSTRUCTION EXECUTIVE of the YEAR
AWARD WINNER

Lorraine Bergman,
Caliente Construction

2009 CONSTRUCTION EXECUTIVE of the YEAR
AWARD WINNER

Jed Billings,
FNF Construction

Jim Uhl,
Agate and Agate Steel

Doug DeClusin,
Sunland Asphalt

William A. Pulice,
Sr. Arizona Construction Industry Pioneer Award Winner - 2009

2009 Best Under the Sun

General Member

2009 Best Under the Sun

Associate Member

Marty Garrison

Greg Gross

2008 CONSTRUCTION EXECUTIVE of the YEAR
AWARD WINNER

Steve Padilla, 2008 Construction Executive of the Year

Bob and Wilson Sundt
Arizona Construction Industry Pioneer Award Winners - 2008

2008 Best Under the Sun

General Member

2008 Best Under the Sun

Associate Member

Cindy Lee, Haydon Building Corp
2008 Best Under the Sun General Member

Tony Hakes, CBIZ, Mayer Hoffman McCann
2008 Best Under the Sun Associate Member

Additional Construction Executive Nominees

Sheridan Bailey
Ironco Enterprises

Michael Smith
Jokake Construction

Rob Sutton
ATS Electric

2007 Construction Executive of the Year Award Winner

Douglas D. Gardner
2007 Valley of the Sun Chapter of CFMA
Arizona Construction Executive of the Year
[click here to read more about Doug Gardner]

Meet the 2007 nominees

Barry Chase, Sr. Vice President,
Adolfson & Peterson Construction

Joe Hitzel, President Southwest
Architectural Builders, Inc.

Dave Jones, President,
Midstate Mechanical, Inc.

Rob Rummel, Pres. and Rick Rummel,
Vice Pres., Rummel Construction, Inc.

William "Wink" Ames
2007 Valley of the Sun Chapter of CFMA
Construction Industry Pioneer Award
[click here to read more about Wink Ames]

Diedre Aldous
2007 Valley of the Sun Chapter of CFMA
Best Under the Sun Award
Outstanding General Member

Chelie Lacrosse
2007 Valley of the Sun Chapter of CFMA
Best Under the Sun Award
Outstanding Associate Member

2007 Arizona Construction

Executive of the Year

2007 Construction Industry

Pioneer Award

Douglas D. Gardner
Chairman, Achen-Gardner, Inc.

William "Wink" Ames
Director, Minard-Ames Insurance Group

From a large selection of extremely qualified individuals, Douglas Gardner of Achen-Gardner, Inc. was selected as the 2007 CFMA Arizona Construction Executive of the Year.

Born and raised in Smith Center, Kansas, Doug graduated from Kansas State University with a BS in Business and Accounting. He then went on to serve in the US Army, including a stint in Viet Nam. He entered the construction business in 1973 with Hunt Building Corporation in El Paso, Texas. His career includes employment with Pulte Homes where he assisted with the opening of the Arizona office. In 1982 he formed the first of several Achen-Gardner companies with Sanders Achen. The Achen-Gardner Companies, beginning with a small housing operation in Casa Grande, quickly expanded in the 1980’s to commercial and highway construction.

Over the last 25 years, Achen-Gardner continued to expand and cover a diverse scope of construction needs with their divisions: Achen Gardner Engineering – heavy highway construction Achen Contractors – subcontract framing GDC Homes – residential development and construction, and RMA Rental and Leasing – heavy equipment leasing Doug views his role as mentoring key employees to become great leaders. As Chairman, Doug focuses on financial systems, bonding and insurance, and legal and administrative areas of the business. He says, about the group of companies, “We are unique because most firms are either home builders, subcontractors, or heavy highway constructors. We are a diverse family of companies with many specialties, all related to construction.” He continues, “the key to success is developing people – we are in the people business.”

Doug believes in contributing to his industry and to the community. He served for 12 years on the ABA Board of Directors, including as its Treasurer. He is involved with the ASU Del E. Webb School of Construction and encourages all of his employees to give back to the construction industry. Most notable, however, is his continued support of local charities. He allocates a percentage of the company profits every year for charitable donations. Some of the beneficiaries of that generosity include Habitat for Humanity, Season for Sharing, and the East Valley Institute of Technology. Other East Valley charities and youth scholarships benefit annually from the Achen-Gardner Chandler Horizon Rotary Club Hole-In-One Contest.

They say, “if you belong to any of the Construction industry associations in the State of Arizona, you know Wink Ames, or have attended one of his classes on construction accounting”. This is not just a saying, it is a TRUTH. Wink has spent his career supporting and promoting the construction industry, and that is why he is the 2007 CFMA Arizona Construction Industry Pioneer.

As an authority in the area of surety bonding and construction insurance, he diligently promotes professionalism and growth among students, contractors, and peers to benefit the industry he has served for so long. His classes on Construction Accounting for the Uninformed continue to be as informative and entertaining as they were 20 years ago.

A Director of Minard-Ames Insurance Group, Wink is instrumental in the marketing of the firm. His exceptional commitment to the construction industry is best evidenced by his many years of participation in a wide variety of associations including as a founding member of the Valley of the Sun Chapter of CFMA. In addition, he has served on the Executive Committee for ASU’s Del E. Webb School of Construction and has been admitted to its Hall of Fame. Wink is a life Director of the Arizona Builders’ Alliance, and the Treasurer of the Arizona Chapter, Associated General Contractors of America. Other Associations that Wink actively participates in include: Arizona Contractors Association; Arizona Subcontractors Association; Arizona Chapter Independent Electrical Contractors of America; and National Association of Surety Bond Producers.

Wink received his BS in Civil Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley. He earned his Associate in Risk Management (ARM) and Associate in Fidelity and Surety Bonding (AFSB).

2006 Executive of the Year
Awards

2005 Executive of the Year
Awards

Michael F. Markham
2006 Valley of the Sun Chapter of CFMA
Arizona Construction Executive of the Year

Mark Fleming
2005 Valley of the Sun Chapter of CFMA
Arizona Construction Executive of the Year

Robert C. Hunt [5/24/23 - 10/22/05]
2006 Valley of the Sun Chapter of CFMA
Construction Industry Pioneer Award

Samuel F. Kitchell
2005 Valley of the Sun Chapter of CFMA
Construction Industry Pioneer Award

Lisa Autino
2006 Valley of the Sun Chapter of CFMA
Best Under the Sun Award
Outstanding General Member

David Beer
2005 Valley of the Sun Chapter of CFMA
Best Under the Sun Award
Outstanding General Member

Ken Kellaney
2006 Valley of the Sun Chapter of CFMA
Best Under the Sun Award
Outstanding Associate Member

Melissa Dolewa
2005 Valley of the Sun Chapter of CFMA
Best Under the Sun Award
Outstanding Associate Member

2004 Executive of the Year
Awards

2003 Executive of the Year
Awards

Carol Warner
2004 Valley of the Sun Chapter of CFMA
Arizona Construction Executive of the Year

J. Doug Pruitt
2003 Valley of the Sun Chapter of CFMA
Arizona Construction Executive of the Year

William Badger, PhD.
2004 Valley of the Sun Chapter of CFMA
Construction Industry Pioneer Award

Bill Corbin
2003 Valley of the Sun Chapter of CFMA
Construction Industry Pioneer Award

Marj Weber
2004 Valley of the Sun Chapter of CFMA
Best Under the Sun Award
Outstanding General Member

Diane Christensen
2003 Valley of the Sun Chapter of CFMA
Best Under the Sun Award
Outstanding General Member

Dennis Tsonis
2004 Valley of the Sun Chapter of CFMA
Best Under the Sun Award
Outstanding Associate Member

Phillip W. Taylor
2003 Valley of the Sun Chapter of CFMA
Best Under the Sun Award
Outstanding Associate Member

2002 Executive of the Year

Awards

2001 Executive of the Year

Awards

Gerald Murphy
2002 Valley of the Sun Chapter of CFMA
Arizona Construction Executive of the Year

Louis R. Borelli
2001 Valley of the Sun Chapter of CFMA
Arizona Construction Executive of the Year

Daniel Mardian
2002 Valley of the Sun Chapter of CFMA
Construction Industry Pioneer Award

Al Wendt
2001 Valley of the Sun Chapter of CFMA
Construction Industry Pioneer Award

David James
2002 Valley of the Sun Chapter of CFMA
Best Under the Sun Award
Outstanding General Member

Scott Thomas
2001 Valley of the Sun Chapter of CFMA
Best Under the Sun Award
Outstanding General Member

Wink Ames
2002 Valley of the Sun Chapter of CFMA
Best Under the Sun Award
Outstanding Associate Member

Carol Hagen
2001 Valley of the Sun Chapter of CFMA
Best Under the Sun Award
Outstanding Associate Member