This past August was the annual meeting for MRA, MRS, and RIC, with each entity holding Board of Directors elections. We are pleased to introduce our new board members and provide a brief biography of each.
Michigan Retailers Association Board
Bill Golden will lead the MRA Board as Chair. Golden is co-president of Golden Shoes, a family owned and operated shoe store in downtown Traverse City since 1954, and which succeeded a shoe retailer dating back to 1883. A Traverse City native, he began working in the store at age 14 and joined the store full-time in 1981. Golden Shoes was honored as Michigan Retailer of the Year in 2005 in the small retail category. Golden was first elected to the Michigan Retailers Services board in 2012, and left to join the MRA board in 2018. He will serve a two-year term.
Bryan Neiman was elected as Vice Chair of the MRA board. Neiman is President and CEO of Neiman’s Family Market, with three locations in Tawas, St. Clair and Clarkston. His parents, Hal and Jean Neiman, founded the company in 1983 by opening an Alpena IGA store, which later became Neiman’s Family Market. Joining his family’s business in 2007 as a Store Director. Neiman joined the board in January 2018 as the Michigan Grocers Association division representative. He will serve a two-year term.
Raeann Rouse
Joining the MRA Board as director is Raeann Rouse, owner of Bridge Street Baby, a newborn to 24-month clothing, gifts, accessories and decor store, located in Rockford. Rouse grew up in the retail world; her parents both owned retail stores in Rockford. Rouse opened Bridge Street Baby in 2017.
Larry Meyer, director on the MRA board, was named Board Member Emeritus.
Michigan Retailers Services Board
Kendra Patterson
Kendra Patterson joins the MRS board as director. Patterson, along with her husband, own Michigan Barn Wood and Salvage, a home décor, furniture, and reclaimed barn wood lumberyard. The business began in 2015 and relocated to a historic lumberyard in Mason in 2017.
Retailers Insurance Board
David Ford
David Ford was newly elected to serve on the RIC board. Ford has been with the Ford Insurance Agency since 1985, and took over as the Agency’s president in 2001. Ford takes pride in the industry and has been very involved in various industry organizations, such as the Michigan Association of Insurance Agents (MAIA). He will serve as director.
Continuing to serve as RIC Board Chair is Jean Sarasin. Sarasin is retired executive vice president and chief operating officer of Michigan Retailers Association and Retailers Insurance and has served on the RIC board since 1997. Sarasin was elected as chair in 2020.
