It is my distinct honor and privilege to share with you my story of appreciation, respect and gratitude for Sandy Kashmark as she soon transitions away from her long held position with CMMA and into a new style of living and working.

It seems a rarity these days to recognize and celebrate long term commitment, growth, development and career success for an individual who has given their best every day to their professional purpose for over three decades. Can you imagine the amount of transformation, innovation and progress that one creates, witnesses and supports throughout such a remarkable run? You can also bet that the path had plenty of bumps, curves and rough spots along the way.

First off, here’s what we know about Sandy from our CMMA website :
After 30 years with the Association office, Sandy has a deep appreciation for manufacturing’s importance in rural communities and a high regard for the skilled leadership within those communities.  There are a remarkable number of people willing to go above and beyond for the betterment of manufacturing.
Initially employed as Administrative Assistant for the newly established Tri-State Manufacturers’ Association, Sandy has watched the organization grow from one regional affiliate with less than 100 members to a centralized nonprofit management structure serving three regional affiliates with nearly 500 members and 40,000 employees.
Residing in Barrett, MN, Sandy is a lifelong resident of West Central Minnesota.  She and her husband Dennis raised three sons and now enjoy the delights of three granddaughters.  Sandy holds a Business Administration degree from Minnesota State University Moorhead and is a licensed health insurance producer.

Now please allow me to share with you some of my personal thoughts and experiences with Sandy. It is fair to say the CMMA may not even exist and certainly not in its current successful structure had Sandy not warmly and optimistically embraced the idea when approached by a small group from central Minnesota who wanted to band together and elevate manufacturing in our part of the State.

Since those days, now over 10 years ago, CMMA has grown from the new kid on the MMA block into an action oriented and goal achieving group with traction and sustainability. Sandy has been the Executive Director of CMMA since our inception and she’s guided, assisted and supported us all along the way. She started as a “one person band” and has grown her leadership team to meet our needs and has positioned us well to pursue opportunity. She has worked hard to get whatever needed doing, done. She’s been a reliable, trustworthy, visionary and supportive friend to CMMA, myself, and countless others.     

Relationship building and maintenance, marketing and promotions, event organization, financial management, team building, communications, reporting, member appreciation, supporting Boards of Directors, community relations and so much more. This is a short list of duties and responsibilities that Sandy has delivered upon, all required for CMMA’s success. Please join me in wishing Sandy our collective best in the future, help me to assure her that she has done her job well and that we are proud of her. She’s left her mark, set the bar high and will be missed as we welcome new leadership and continue to thrive and grow thanks to her strong legacy.  Raise your glass, tip your hat, here’s to Sandy!

Join us on December 14 at the CMMA Holiday Social to thank Sandy in person and wish her well! Register.