January 22, 2008
Contact: Mary Ellen Pahlka-Hudicka
1-800-877-9911 ext. 1014
PHILADELPHIA, PA –Mary Ellen Pahlka-Hudicka, MAS, was recently honored with the Promotional Products Association International (PPAI) Distinguished Service Award, presented at the annual PPAI Expo during a ceremony in Las Vegas on January 16. A veteran of the promotional products industry for more than twenty-five years, Pahlka-Hudicka is the Director of Marketing Communications for Bodek and Rhodes, one of the nation's leading suppliers of imprintable activewear.
"Mary Ellen has been a mentor, friend and inspiration to so many people in our industry," said PPAI Chairman of the Board, Paul Kiewiet, MAS, CIP. "She has the passion, creativity and energy that lifts everyone around her. Her generosity with her talents, her gifts of leadership and love of sharing her knowledge and ideas has helped innumerable people in our industry raise their own professionalism. The volunteer spirit she exemplifies is what has built this Association and sustained it over its long history."
An award commending stellar service and leadership to the promotional products industry, the Distinguished Service Award is presented to PPAI members who give of their time and knowledge for the Association. Among her many efforts to support the industry, Pahlka-Hudicka has served on the PPAI board of directors, where she was the PPAI Board vice chair for marketing services. She has served on numerous other PPAI committees and task forces, including the PPAI Centennial, Education and Strategic Planning committees. In addition to her roles in leadership, Pahlka-Hudicka has also served as an educator and has led more than 100 educational seminars and created sessions to address courses for industry accreditation programs.
"Do you know how good this feels? Itos like having a heaping slice of your favorite carrot cake and being able to enjoy it without any calories!" said Pahlka-Hudicka. "It's an award for doing what I love ...helping the most amazing and underrated industry and its wonderfully creative people grow, while I grew at the same time. I am blown away!"
Said Mike Rhodes, president of Bodek and Rhodes, "We're very lucky to have Mary Ellen with us. Her creativity, generosity and enthusiasm is infectious. She's always the first one to help those around her, both in the promotional products industry and personally, and I'm very glad PPAI is honoring her with this award—she deserves it."
Pahlka-Hudicka is one of only two recipients of the PPAI Education Lifetime Achievement Award and one of only six recipients of the PPAI Facilitator Excellence Award. Her work at Bodek and Rhodes has been honored each of the past eight years with the PPAI Suppliers Achievement Award in the Supplier Self-Promotion category. Outside PPAI, Pahlka-Hudicka has served as the president of the Specialty Advertising Council of the Delaware Valley (SACDV) and was recently inducted into the SACDV Hall of Fame. She is a charter member of Promotional Professionals Mentoring Network (PPMN) and had been a president of its predecessors, YEPPA and PPNA, and a member for nearly 20 years.
Bodek and Rhodes, one of the leading wholesalers of imprintable activewear, has its headquarters in Philadelphia, PA with distribution centers in Philadelphia, PA; Niles, MI; Fresno, CA; Norton, MA; and Orlando, FL. More information on Bodek and Rhodes, as well as their full line of wearables and other promotional products, is available online at www.BodekandRhodes.com.