Page 3 - AAA Now! – AAA Shelby County – May/June 2022

CEO'S MESSAGE
AAA
Volume 5, No. 2
TM
HEADQUARTERS OFFICE
920 Wapakoneta Avenue Sidney, OH 45365 937-492-3167 ~ 800-274-3129
OFFICE HOURS
Monday through Friday 9:00AM ~ 5:00PM Closed Saturday/Sunday
OFFICERS
Deborah L. Barga
Chief Executive Officer
Gerald Wehrman
Board President
Kenneth Francis
1st Vice President
Thomas Kerrigan
2nd Vice President
Jeff Replogle
3rd Vice President
DIRECTORS
Stanley Evans...................Sidney Mitch Steinke ............ Jackson Center Mary Lou Holly ...............Sidney Tim Gleason.....................Sidney Todd Lotz .................. Jackson Center Mike McRill...................... Anna
Jay Putnam ..................... Conover Hope Abke .......................Sidney
Judie Karhan
Editor-in-Chief
Tina Cathcart
Regional Editor
AAA NOW! (ISSN#1097-1851) (ISSN) is published four times a year (Jan/Feb, Mar/Apr, July/Aug, Nov/Dec) by AAA Shelby County, 920 Wapakoneta Ave, Sidney, Ohio 45365. Periodicals mail postage paid at Sidney, OH and other additional mailing offices. A subscription price of $1.50 annually is paid through membership dues.
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AAA of Shelby County Motor Club Celebrates
100 YEARS OF SERVICE
By Jodi Borger
Deborah Barga, CEO, AAA Shelby County
American Automobile Association (AAA) Shelby County is celebrating 100 years as a not- for-profit
organization providing auto, travel and other related services for its members and customers.
It didn’t take long after
County. “They saw this firsthand from the neighboring motor club in Piqua that formed in 1908.”
Two decades later, on October 17, 1922, local automobile owners were invited to
meet at the office of H. E. Bennett Realty Co. where they established their own independent organization, the Shelby County Motor Club. The club office was located on Dixie Highway in Sidney. According to the Sidney Daily News article from October 23, 1922, everyone who owned an automobile was encouraged to become a member.
The formation of the automobile clubs ultimately reduced the occurrences of stolen vehicles, helped to find those vehicles that were stolen, prompted road repair and installation of safety warning signals and made traveling easier and more cost effective for members. Since the beginning, AAA Shelby County has also been contracted through the state of Ohio to operate the county’s bureau of motor vehicles.
“We’re the only auto club to have held a contract with the state for 100 years,” says Barga. “That’s something we
are very proud of.” Continued on page 4 3
horseless carriages began appearing on roadways for motorists to begin organizing automobile clubs. It was the collaboration between nine of those automobile clubs throughout the country, with less than 1,500 members, that formed the AAA in 1902.
As the prevalence of auto clubs around the state and the country continued to grow, Shelby County automobile owners recognized the need for their own local club.
“These clubs turned out to be very important from a safety and security standpoint for those who owned automobiles,” says Deborah Barga, chief executive officer of AAA Shelby
MAY/JUNE 2022
Now!