Automotive Hall of Fame Names 1998 Award Winners
26 June 1998
Automotive Hall of Fame Names 1998 Young Leadership & Excellence Award Winners DEARBORN, Mich., June 25 -- Skill, creativity, and
perseverance are the traits of the four individuals who have been named to
receive the Automotive Hall of Fame's 1998 Young Leadership and Excellence
Award.
Bob Boniface, Yongping Gu, George Thanopoulos and Elizabeth Wetzel will be
honored with 11 Automotive Hall of Fame Inductees at the Annual Induction and
Awards Night, Tuesday, October 13, at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel. The Hall of
Fame's Young Leadership and Excellence Award is for men and women no more than
35 years of age who have demonstrated significant potential for future
industry leadership.
Boniface, 32, is a Senior Designer at Chrysler Corporation. Upon
receiving his Bachelor's Degree in Transportation Design from the Center for
Creative Studies in 1992, Boniface joined Chrysler's design studio. Early on
in his career, he helped design several Dodge vehicles including a concept
Intrepid ESK and a concept minivan, the Caravan ESS. His most prestigious
accomplishment to date -- designing the 1998 Dodge Intrepid.
Gu, 35, of Ford Motor Company, holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in
Materials Science and Engineering from Zhejiang University and a Masters of
Science Degree in the same discipline from China's Iron and Steel Research
Institute. He came to the United States in 1987 on a research fellowship at
Villanova University where he earned a second Masters of Science Degree in
Mechanical Engineering. He is completing Ph.D. work at Wayne State
University. Gu joined Ford in 1991 and is now a Senior Technical Specialist.
Gu is responsible for developing Ford's first marketing strategy for Oriental
communities and is part of the project management of the Ford Ecostar electric
van.
George Thanopoulos is Vice President and General Manager of MascoTech
Sintered Components, in Auburn Hills, Michigan. Born in Athens, Greece, he
came to the United States at the age of five. He graduated Magna Cum Laude
from the University of Michigan, earning a Bachelor of Science Degree in
Mechanical Engineering. Starting as a Process Design Engineer in 1985, he
moved up the ranks to Plant Manager of MascoTech in Livonia, Michigan, and
General Manager of two other Masco facilities. Thanopoulos is responsible for
the division's recent expansion into Europe with a new facility in Spain and
he led the initiative to automate processes in North America and Europe
through advanced robotics technology.
Elizabeth Wetzel, 34, of General Motors Corporation, received a Bachelor
of Fine Arts Degree from the University of Michigan, College of Art and
Design. Wetzel is currently a Vehicle Chief Designer at the GM Design Center,
leading a team of designers, sculptors and engineers through the design
process for both the interior and exterior of a vehicle. She started her
career in 1986 as Associate Engineer for General Motors Advanced Vehicle
Engineering Department. Through the 1990's she held several design positions
in the Cadillac design studio, working on the Seville, Eldorado and Deville
carlines.
Automotive leaders previously announced to be inducted into the Hall of
Fame that same evening are: Andre Citroen, creator of the Citroen car; Yutaka
Katayama, credited with Nissan's early success in the United States; the Opel
Brothers (Carl, Wilhelm, Heinrich, Friedrich and Ludwig), famous for
production of the vehicles bearing their name; Charles Pigott, Chairman and
Chief Executive Officer of PACCAR Inc. for three decades; Fred M. Zeder, known
for his part in the creation of Chrysler Corporation and Count Ferdinand von
Zeppelin, producer of automotive components and inventor of the dirigible
airship.
Tickets to the Annual Induction and Awards Night, $150 each, can be
purchased by calling Melissa Aldridge at 313-240-4000 extension 237.
