I am sure everyone remembers the importance of school spirit when we were younger. We learned through school teams and organizations that participation was enjoyable.

Also, by participating, we established pride in our school and in ourselves. We chanted loudly at pep rallies, we wore our school colors to games, and cheered enthusiastically when our football team scored a touchdown.

Of course, that was quite a long time ago for most of us. But many of us still recognize the satisfaction that belonging to a group can give us, especially a winning one.

As we aged, the number and types of groups we're involved with may have increased. For example, because of your membership, your business belongs to an overall group of independent automotive service shops represented by ASA. Also, we are all representatives of the Automotive Service Association to people outside our association. Therefore, we should all be proud to support ASA just as we were proud to support our schools years ago. I think we should all display some ASA spirit!

How can you do this? Well, you can show your pride in ASA simply by displaying your ASA sign, wearing an ASA shirt, or including the ASA logo in all of your advertisements and on your company letterhead. Also, when purchasing services or equipment, check out ASA benefit providers or associate members first. If you must purchase from a nonaffiliated company, ask that company why it's not a member of ASA. In addition, always attend meetings at the local, state and national levels. Because proper instruction is of the utmost importance, make certain to attend training and bring as many employees as possible. Above all, mention the benefits of joining ASA to any nonmembers you happen to meet.

Just as the Beach Boys sang, "Be true to your school," I think we all should "Be true to our association!"

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