MEDA's 50th Anniversary Celebration
1960 - Celebrating 50 Years - 2010
The Michigan Economic Developers Association was established in 1960 by a group of 15 men. Fifty years later, MEDA is booming, with record-high membership of nearly 475 and highly-rated educational conferences throughout each year.
The MEDA staff and Board of Directors have developed many exciting plans to commemorate this occasion, including a year-long fundraiser to Michigan's Goodwills. We chose Goodwill because of their committment to improving society. They have constantly given back to the community through their services and programs. See their website www.goodwill.org for many examples.
The celebration would not be complete without an understanding and appreciation for MEDA's past. Below is a brief history of the association and some interesting facts.
MEDA members, please send your memories, pictures, etc., that you would like to share, for us to add to this page!
Email materials to: cjorae@medaweb.org.
History of the Organization
MEDA was established in 1960 by a group of 15 men, who joined together on May 25th, 1960, at the Kellogg Center in East Lansing in order to have a; "discussion of the merits of having an independent organization of men who devote the majority of their time to industrial development." The meeting, "concluded with the agreement that an informal organization was advisable for the present."
The Origin of MEDA (as written in the 1989-1990 Annual Report)
"MIDA's roots can be traced to an Industrial Development Advisory Committee to the Michigan Department of Economic Development, a small agency which later became a component of the Commerce Department. This committee included industrial agents employed by five railroads, four public utilities and three communities. The Michigan State Chamber was starting and also wanted an advisory committee made up of the same individuals.
Motivation for a separate association in 1960 was a desire for independence from both government control and chamber influence. Since then, the pendulum has swung back and forth like the clapper of the Liberty Bell, with some resounding pronouncements and a few cracked notes.
Chairman of the advisory committee was Horace Brewer, MIDA's founder, an Industrial Agent working for Consumers Power Company. His colleagues had mentioned the need for an informal professional association. He found an opportunity to discuss it with his boss while returning in the company limousine from a plant dedication. The Vice President offered enthusiastic support for the idea and suggested that Brewer invite the developers to a company camp at Tippy Dam for an organizational meeting. This is the origin of the apocryphal story that MIDA was conceived in the back seat of a limousine and born at Tippy Dam."
Founding Members
Horace Brewer, Robert Byers, James Coates, Robert Gage, Jack Kavanaugh, William McClelland, George Moffett, Robert Nicholson, John O'Neill, Gustav Peterson, Gerald Smith, Clifford Webb, Don Weeks, Carl Wilkins and Wilbur Young.
Previous Names
Michigan Professional Industrial Development Association (MPIDA)
Michigan Industrial Developers Association (MIDA)
Past Presidents 2009 - Perrin Emanuel 2007 - Ray DeWinkle 2005 - Barry Visel 2004 - Jeff Ratcliffe 2003 - Maureen Krauss 2002 - Steve Jonas 2001 - Susan Lackey 2000 - Roger Royer 1999 - William Cotton 1998 - Kenneth Kolasa 1997 - Kenneth Kolasa 1996 - Mary Grace Wilbert Barnes 1995 - Debra Davino Patzer 1994 - Debra Davino Patzer 1993 - Gregory Woodbury 1992 - Patricia Crawford-Lucas 1991 - Patricia Crawford-Lucas 1990 - Timothy Schroeder 1989 - Donald Schurr 1988 - Jeffrey Kaczmarek 1987 - Robert Sieghart 1986 - Charlie Johnson 1985 - James Hundiak
1983 - Matthew Piernick 1981 - Charles A. Schrenk 1980 - Clifford A. Kleier 1979 - Richard R. Surbrook 1978 - Anthony Jarrett 1977 - James R. Dane 1976 - Basil P. Inkpen 1975 - William B. Berrington 1974 - Robert M. Stevens 1973 - Wilber M. Young 1972 - Ray G. Steeb 1971 - Michael Michels 1970 - William McClelland 1969 - Thomas L. Diak 1968 - Daniel R. Andrew 1967 - William Cronenwett 1966 - John P. Kavanaugh 1965 - Gus Peterson 1964 - Robert L. Gage 1963 - George Moffett 1962 - William Farrell 1961 - John F. O’Neill 1960 - Horace Brewer
2008 - Jill Bland
2006 - Susan M.C. Pigg
1984 - John Lindale
1982 - Michael S. Ammann
Interesting Bits
For the first meeting of the association, the group was referred to as the "Professional Industrial Development Men."
Click here for the minutes of the first meeting (from May 25, 1960).
Click here for the minutes of the second meeting (July 26, 1960).
Click here for the minutes to the third meeting (November 16, 1960).
Click here for the first Membership Directory from 1973-1974.
Click here for the Original Membership Requirements and Letter.
Click here for the first By-Laws.
Click here for a news article from 1960 on Industrial Piracy.
Click here for a letter on Legislation for Industrial Development.
Click here for the meeting minutes of the addition of Associate Membership.
Click here for an "Economic Echoes" news article from 1961.
Six of MEDA's first sixteen Presidents were railroad industrial agents. According to the 1989 - 1990 Annual Report, "The term "industrial agent" was a railroad job title and became the civil service designation for a professional in the field. Railroads were among the first industrial developers in America, employing special agents to sell industrial and commercial sites along their routes. The land had been granted to the rail companies as a development incentive to construct the system."
The first Membership Directory was printed in 1973. In order to print the directory, each member had to order 33 copies at a price of $30. Today the Membership Directory is available online (updated each time a member is added) and a printed copy is mailed to each member once a year.