Breaking Records, Building Opportunities

Throughout the convention, partnership was a clear theme. Martin reflected on his year as president and the privilege of witnessing SMACNA members’ positive impacts across the nation’s communities. He credits his father, a Vietnam veteran, for inspiring his ethos of service: a mindset he carries at both T.H. Martin and to the SMACNA presidency.

He highlighted the collaborative relationship between SMACNA contractors and their labor partners at SMART. “We need each other not only to survive, but to thrive,” Martin explains. “We must be realistic; management and labor will not always agree on everything. That’s simply not possible. However, instead of allowing minor disputes to escalate into nationwide challenges, we choose to engage with a focus on solving problems, not creating them.”

He thanked SMART General President Mike Coleman for a decades-long partnership built on trust and shared priorities. “Even when we disagreed, and there were certainly times when that turned out to be the case, we kept communicating with the priority of industry first,” Martin adds.

As Martin passed the gavel to incoming President Todd Hill, he said, “I have worked to make you proud not only of me, but of this association, and I hope that I have delivered on that trust.”

Tom Martin, Immediate Past President, T.H. Martin Inc., Cleveland, Ohio

Gary Myers, Scott Vidimos, Todd Hill, Tom Martin and Joseph Samia (left to right).

SMACNA Announces 5 New College of Fellows Inductees

A highlight of the SMACNA Annual Convention is the announcement of SMACNA’s annual awards.

The 2025 SMACNA Contractor of the Year is B.J. Giri, Principal at Holaday-Parks Inc., Seattle, Washington. Giri entered the industry by accident during a random meeting while working in a downtown Seattle parking garage. Thirty years later, he has become an inspirational industry leader and an active member at SMACNA Western Washington. As SMACNA Immediate Past President Tom Martin says, “He lives his life by a simple yet poignant motto: ‘Every day, thank someone, learn something, teach something and, most importantly, forgive someone.’”

B.J. Giri	Bob Pope	Matthew Sano
Thomas Gunning III	Tom Szymczak	John Itlen

Bob Pope, who recently retired as the Managing Director of the Sheet Metal and Roofing Contractors Association of the Miami Valley in Ohio, was named the 2025 SMACNA Chapter Executive of the Year. During his career, Pope built a reputation as a bridge builder who values collaboration over confrontation and is regarded as one of the Midwest’s top association executives. Working with his peers in Dayton, Ohio’s Sheet Metal Local 24, Pope helped build and strengthen a training program that set a standard for integrity, accountability, and innovation in the workplace. Sheet Metal Local 24 Business Manager Cole Chaney praises Pope’s work. “Labor and management aren’t opposing forces; when we work together, we’re stronger,” he emphasizes.

The Legislative Contractor of the Year award went to Matthew Sano of Fisher Balancing Co. SMACNA honored Sano for his tireless advocacy and bipartisan coalition-building. 

SMACNA recognized Thomas S. Gunning III of SMACNA Boston Inc. as Chapter Executive Legislative Advocate of the Year for decades of successful legislative engagement.

The Distinguished Legislative Service Award was presented to Tom Szymczak of SSM Industries, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Lastly, the Charles Corbett Excellence in Labor Relations Award went to John Itlen of Ilten’s Inc., Cedar Rapids, Iowa, lauded for maintaining labor-management harmony through calm leadership and deep-rooted professional standards.