Russ Verona

Russell “Russ” Verona owned East Rockford Collision Center in Rockford, Ill., for 41 years; in 1990 it became the first business in the world to earn I-CAR’s Gold Class Professionals designation, which it held for 15 consecutive years. A founder and past chairman of I-CAR, he was a trustee emeritus of the I-CAR Education Foundation and served on I-CAR’s Gold Class Steering Committee. A member of the Automotive Service Association for more than 25 years, he held state and national ASA leadership posts and chaired NACE. I-CAR’s Russ Verona Memorial Award, recognizing an outstanding Gold Class shop each year, and the ASA Russ Verona Memorial IBIS Scholarship honor him. He received an Emeritus Award posthumously in 2006. He died Feb. 6, 2006, at 73.