Ohio Corporate Attorney Elected AAA Federation Chairman

DETROIT--May 1, 20056, 2005--Charles H. Hire, an Ohio corporate attorney and trustee of The Ohio Automobile Club, has been elected chairman of the AAA board of directors at the 102nd AAA Annual Meeting being held in Detroit this week.

Approximately 285 delegates and club officials, representing the federation's 70 affiliated clubs in the United States and Canada, also elected Jeanette L. Gamba of Oklahoma City, Okla., vice chairman and re-elected J. Crawford Reid of Brantford, Ontario, Canada, secretary.

Hire, who served as vice chairman of the AAA board the past two years, has been a trustee of The Ohio Automobile Club since 1985 and is a past chair of the club's board of directors. He is a partner at Baker & Hostetler LLP in its Columbus, Ohio, office where he concentrates his practice primarily on business, securities law and mutual fund matters.

Hire also was a pilot in the U.S. Air Force and the Ohio National Guard and resides with his family in Columbus.

Gamba is president and CEO of Jordan Associates, a full-service advertising and communications agency headquartered in Oklahoma City, serving clients throughout the country. She has served on the AAA Oklahoma board since 1996.

Reid, who is a past chair of the Canadian Automobile Association, joined the board of directors of CAA South Central Ontario in 1985 and became chair of that board in 1995.

Re-elected to three-year terms on the board of directors were: Hire, Terry W. Baker of Portland, Ore., Allen J. DeWalle of Wilmington, Del., Jeanette L. Gamba of Oklahoma City, Okla., and Charles H. Podowski of Dearborn, Mich.

Re-elected to a two-year term as immediate past chairman was Willis B. Wood, Jr. of Los Angeles, Calif.

Wayne A. Budd of Boston, Mass. was elected to a new three-year term on the board, and Antonia Hernandez of Los Angeles, Calif. was elected to a two-year term.

AAA provides more than 48 million members with travel, insurance, financial and automotive-related services. Since its founding in 1902, the not-for-profit, fully tax paying AAA has been a leader and advocate for the safety and security of all travelers. AAA clubs can be visited on the Internet at http://www.aaa.com.