STIHL HONORS MID-STAR TIMBER HARVESTING:
2005 NATIONAL OUTSTANDING LOGGER
Date: April 2005
Release Date: IMMEDIATELY
Press Contacts:
Anita Gambill (757) 486-9151 or
Terry Kelley (757) 340-7425
All other inquiries:
STIHL Incorporated
(757) 486-9100
Rockville, MD – Stihl, Inc. honored Mitchell and Wanda
Presley, owners of Toxey, Alabama's Mid-Star Timber
Harvesting, as the 2005 National Outstanding Logger at the
Forest Resources Association's Annual Awards Dinner,
March 7, in New Orleans, Louisiana. Steve Merriam, Stihl's
National Sales Manager, congratulated Mitchell and Wanda and
presented them with a $1,000 check.
FRA Chairman Rick Frost, who had worked with Mitchell earlier
in his career, also congratulated the couple and commented,
"A lot has happened in 25 years. Mitchell Presley has
become quite an entrepreneur.”
Mitchell Presley accepted the award, remarking, "We're
certainly honored to be recognized tonight and receive this
award. I'd also like to thank our dedicated employees,
and my business partner and wife. We found ourselves with
an opportunity, and we took it.”
Mitchell stressed the important role Wanda has played in
guiding the business. "Both of us challenge each other
and look at how we might become stronger and more versatile.”
Mitchell Presley began his career as an employee of Scott
Paper Company's Woodland Operations and later as a crew
foreman for one of Kimberly Clark's Delta logging crews.
In 1999, the Presleys started Mid-Star Timber Harvesting with
equipment purchased from Kimberly Clark.
Since then, Mid-Star has grown remarkably, from one crew
to three harvesting crews and one road crew, totaling nearly
50 employees. "Our Mission,” says Mitchell, "is
to be the best wood supply group in the Southeast, through
safe operations producing quality results, while meeting customer
needs and maximizing stakeholder value.”
Mid-Star Timber Harvesting has a performance rating system
for monitoring the safety and productivity of each employee.
On-the-job training and participation in Alabama's Professional
Logging Manager training program is stressed in regular "follow-up”
sessions. Specialists at MacTrain Safety Consultants support
Mid-Star's goal of an injury-free workplace.
Mitchell and Wanda developed a written business plan for
Mid-Star at the inception of their company and continue to
use and update the plan as the business grows. The plan is
very specific about the people they hire, skills that employees
must acquire, tracking employee performance, and opportunities
for employees to become stakeholders in the company.
Mitchell and Wanda both participated in the financial score-keeping
portion of the "Coaching the Professional Logger”
video produced by the Alabama Loggers Council with financial
assistance from FRA's Timber Harvesting and Transportation
Safety Foundation. The Presleys are active in many other Alabama
Forestry Association & Logger Council projects, including
Log A Load for Kids®.
FRA has honored 16 National Outstanding Loggers since establishing
the national award in 1990. Recent National Outstanding Loggers
include Travis Reed of Georgia (2000), Randy Pew of California
(2001), Michigan's Dave and Sue Sidell (2002), Ken and
Lynetta Griner of Florida (2003), and John and Nipper Bunn
in 2004. Nominees for this year's award passed through
state-level recognition to regional award programs administered
through FRA's Technical Division structure. A jury of
25 national-level leaders in forestry and conservation selects
the winner.
The other nominees for this year's National award were:
Jeffrey Boland, Boland Timber Company, Perry, Florida
Charles & Chuck Courtney, Courtney Timber Harvesting,
Greenville, Kentucky
Tom & Sherry Fox, Tree Management Plus, Ethel, Washington
Donald Hardwick, D.H. Hardwick & Sons, Antrim, New Hampshire
The Outstanding Logger program is designed:
1) to recognize outstanding logging contractor performance;
2) to raise the visibility of competent, professional independent
logging contractors in the forestry community;
3) to encourage other independent logging contractors to emulate
the outstanding performance of the award winners; and
4) to improve forester-logger relations by publicly recognizing
outstanding logging performance as an essential element of
every planned timber harvest.
About STIHL Inc.
STIHL Inc. manufactures the world’s largest selling brand of chain saws and produces a full line of powerful, lightweight, and versatile handheld outdoor power equipment for homeowners and professional users. STIHL products are sold through servicing power equipment retailers from coast to coast— not mass merchants. For more information or for the name of the closest STIHL retailer call toll free 1-800-GO STIHL (1-800-467-8445) or visit the STIHL Web site at www.stihlusa.com.
For information on job opportunities with STIHL Inc., please go to www.stihlcareers.com. STIHL is an EEO and drug-free work environment.
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