Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/107993
Meet Your New Board Members David Melton Quality Petroleum Birmingham, AL David Melton has a long history with P&CMA. He has been involved in the association since the 1970s. While he was in college at Florence State, he would drive down to Birmingham on weekends to work for his uncle, Lee Melton, who owned a chain of Amoco stations. Lee Melton was formerly a District Manager at Amoco Oil Company. After retiring in 1974, Mr. Melton started his own distributorship. When David graduated from college in 1979, he went to work full-time for the business. David worked his way up in the business: installing gasoline tanks, driving gasoline trucks, and running self-service locations. In 1984, the Weeks family of Quality Petroleum in Florida purchased the company from Lee Melton and hired David to run the Alabama division of the business. Today, David is the Vice President of Quality Petroleum of Alabama. David and his wife, Joyce, have been married for 32 years and have 2 children and 2 grandchildren, with one more on the way. Since the loss of their son Dylan, David and Joyce are raising their grandson, Zeke. Their daughter, Allison, who often came to the P&CMA summer events, is now married and has a 2 year old son, Rivers, and is expecting another baby. David believes P&CMA "offers the best opportunity for us to develop relationships with our local policy makers and politicians. It also gives us a chance to share ideas with colleagues and create an environment for positive change and education in the fuel industry." For this reason, David has always tried to participate in the association's activities. David sees a positive future for the members of P&CMA. "With the addition of Bart Fletcher, we have the opportunity to bring new ideas to our association. Arleen Alexander has the vision and wisdom to guide our interest down in Montgomery. They both will provide an excellent resource in their areas of expertise." Rick Norton Slidell Oil Company Montgomery, AL Rick Norton is a family man. He puts faith and trust in Christ first in his life. Beyond his faith, his life revolves around his family; his wife, Jamie, and his son, Tyler. Since the sudden death of their daughter, Skyler, in 1994, Rick and Jamie are even closer to one another and to the Lord. Rick has never moved far from his roots. He lives in Elmore County, which is where he grew up. A "country boy," Rick enjoys farming and is very active in his church and has served for many years on the Holtville PTO. Rick is General Manager of the Commercial Division of Slidell Oil Company. Starting at Interstate Oil in 1982, Rick worked his way up in the company from sweeping floors, cleaning bathrooms to driving trucks and finally working in the office. His degree in Business Management (with a minor in environmental biology) proved helpful in his position as Operations Manager and later Vice President of Operations at Interstate Oil. Slidell Oil purchased the company in 2011 and asked Rick to stay as General Manager of the Commercial Division. It is his responsibility to grow the commercial side of the business. Rick has been involved with P&CMA for about 12 years. He is currently serving his second 3-year term on the Alabama UST Trust Fund Management Board. As a new board member, Rick hopes to see the association work closely with the governor's office as well as coordinating with surrounding states' governors during declarations of emergency. He hopes to help address the issue of tax payments for new store owners in Alabama - to help them with the challenges they face when opening a store in a new city. Rick is looking forward to his term on the P&CMA Board of Directors. WINTER 2013 OIL PROPHETS 23