BOCA GRANDE, Fla. – The Marine Retailers Association of the Americas honored association president Phil Keeter with its Retailing Hall of Fame Award at the Marine Dealer Conference & Expo in Orlando.

On Tuesday, Nov. 8, during Keeter’s retirement dinner, the association announced that it was changing the name of its Retailing Hall of Fame award to the Phil Keeter Retailing Hall of Fame Award. And Keeter was announced as the first recipient of that award.

“To have this award named after me is one of the highest honors I have ever received,” said Phil Keeter, who officially retires as MRAA president at the end of the year. “To be named the first recipient is simply icing on the cake.”

Keeter was one of the 12 founding members of the MRAA in 1972, and he served on the MRAA board of directors until 1982. He then became the association’s first president in 1988. He has dedicated the last 23 years to leading the association, and he is retiring at the end of the year.

“Honoring Phil with the renaming of this award is really the least we can do to recognize the commitment he has shown marine retailers over his career,” says Matt Gruhn, incoming president of the MRAA. “It’s rare to find someone who dedicates so much of their life to one industry, and it’s really an honor to recognize everything Phil has accomplished over his career by renaming this award and carrying on his legacy by presenting it to others who work to further the interests of marine retailing.”

About Marine Retailers Association of the Americas

The Marine Retailers Association of the Americas is the only North American association dedicated to furthering the interests of boat and engine dealers and other marine-related retailers throughout North America. Under the umbrella of MRAA Rewards, the MRAA offers a host of cost-saving, revenue-generating, business-improvement, and professional-development benefits exclusively for its members. For more information, visit www.MRAA.com.