Home → ERA Publications → The Representor – Current Issue → Representor Spring 2026 – Chapter News

Spring 2026 – Chapter News

Chapter News reports the local activities of the 22 chapters of ERA. The chapters sponsor educational and training workshops, local trade shows, legislative and industry projects to enhance the professionalism of individual members and to advance the goals and mission of the national association.

AWARDS

ERA is proud to announce the 2025 Cameron English Chapters of the Year award recipients! The awards were based on four categories: Education, Networking, Membership and Special Projects.

The award recipients are:

Education: Minnesota ERA, for hosting an impressive and valuable 3-hour generative AI “deep dive” educational session with Sam Richter as the presenter, and a networking lunch afterwards.

Networking: ERA Canada, for its tremendously successful “November 2 Remember” event that welcomed 150 industry professionals who brought unwrapped toys in support of the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

Membership: Southern California ERA for its participation in the Anaheim Electronics & Manufacturing Show and the Del Mar Electronics & Manufacturing Show, two major industry events that draw engineers, manufacturers, distributors and decision‑makers from across the region. The shows provided a valuable opportunity to network with current ERA members and strengthen relationships.

Special Projects: ERA Metro NY for its successful golf event, held annually in memory of Steve Alford, who was the Chapter president for many years. This special event allowed chapter members to network with many others in the field and enjoy a day of fun and golf.

Congratulations to all of the recipients and to all of the chapters who submitted events for judging!

ARIZONA

Arizona ERA recently hosted an event at Arizona State University in collaboration with the IEEE Club. Eight students attended, ranging from sophomores to graduate students. While it was a smaller group, the engagement level was outstanding. The students were actively interacting with members of the Chapter Board of Directors—and while free food always helps capture a college student’s attention, the conversations and questions showed genuine interest. Building on this success, we are planning another session with the IEEE Club and are also coordinating meetings with Grand Canyon University.

On April 2, Arizona ERA hosted an in-person networking event featuring two distinguished guest speakers: Ed Smith, CEO of ERA National, and Eric Hertz, Executive Vice President at Axon. The event was well attended, with 45 members of our industry community joining us.

The evening opened with Rick Dale, Arizona ERA President, who honored the memory of Cameron English with a moment of silence. Eric Hertz then shared an insightful Axon update, emphasizing why strong partnerships between representatives, suppliers and distributors are critical to Axon’s success. Ed Smith followed with a high-level industry outlook, highlighting the growing importance and impact of AI within our industry.

Thank you to all the representatives, suppliers and distributors who continue to support Arizona ERA. A special thank-you goes to our event sponsors: ERA National, Avnet and Master Electronics.

Please be sure to mark your calendars for Sept. 30 for the Arizona ERA annual golf tournament. If you would like to be added to the distribution list for chapter updates, please contact Alicia Doten at alicia.doten@tsc-kruvand.com.

CAROLINAS

Carolinas ERA made a strong showing at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte Career Fair in February. Rob Brunson and Buzz Reynolds manned the chapter booth and had an incredibly energetic day connecting with students and professionals. They had a steady stream of visitors stopping by, curious about ERA and the exciting world of manufacturers’ sales representatives. They also had productive discussions with UNC Charlotte staff about collaborating on future seminars focused on technical sales and the manufacturers’ rep model— stay tuned for more on that!

The chapter hosted its annual DTAM presentation in March, where it also awarded both a rep and a distributor member with an educational scholarship.

The fall CERA golf tournament will be Oct. 8. Stay tuned for registration details.

CHICAGOLAND-WISCONSIN

Chicagoland-Wisconsin ERA’s annual Summerfest outing will be held on Thursday, June 25 at the Miller Oasis Stage in Milwaukee. Electronic industry reps, distributors and manufacturers are welcome to network, eat, drink and enjoy some great music. Attendees will need to purchase tickets online beforehand or at the gate.

METRO NY

Join ERA Metro NY for the annual Steve Alford Memorial golf event! It will be a day of golf (or dinner-only, if you prefer), a cocktail party and dinner at one of the Top 100 Golf Courses in the U.S.! This event will take place Monday, June 22, at the St. George’s Golf Club in East Setauket, N.Y. Registration and breakfast will start at 10:30 a.m. and shotgun start at 12:20 p.m. There will be prizes, games and a 50/50 raffle! The event will benefit the Long Island Cares Harry Chapin Food Bank to benefit veterans.

MINNESOTA

Minnesota ERA manufacturers’ reps: it has become clear in recent months that there is a demand for a NexGen special interest group at the local level in Minnesota. Rep firms, consider nominating your early-career/rising star employees to ERA’s NexGen group. The goals of the local NexGen group would be: Giving new-to-the-industry and younger members a sounding board for questions and topics pertaining to the industry; providing an educational approach to best practices in the industry as a manufacturers’ rep; navigating common challenges and hurdles facing new salespeople trying to establish themselves; creating a strong network of young leaders to “carry the torch” and bridge the generational gaps in the industry; discussing strategies to promote the rep model and evangelize the benefits of the rep network to manufacturers and customers; and cultivating ideas for attracting and retaining future talent in the electronics industry.

Rich Ostrom of Northport Engineering is planning an inaugural networking outing at a local brewery within the next few months to get the local NexGen group kicked off. In addition, we are organizing a chapter event in June which will include a separate discussion hour for the NexGen group as well.

Find out more about the NexGen group at: https://era.org/about-era/era-next-generation-special-interest-group/ or contact Rich Ostrom at rostrom@northporteng.com with questions.

NEW ENGLAND

New England ERA hosted a great virtual session in March, with host Turner Time Management. The session dived deep into practical productivity strategies using Microsoft 365 and Al-powered Copilot. In June, the chapter will host a masterclass and networking dinner with Chris Lins. The chapter’s annual golf tournament will take place Thursday, Oct 1. Stay tuned for more details on both of these upcoming events.

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

Office 365 Training Series. The chapter’s monthly Microsoft Office 365 training series is one of the best-kept secrets in the industry and one of the best values, too. Through a partnership negotiated with a Microsoft Certified Trainer, we offer this at a significantly reduced cost for ERA members! Sessions cover a wide range of productivity and sales-effectiveness topics designed to help your team get more out of the tools you already use every day. Remaining sessions in 2026: May 12; June 9; July 14; August 11; September 8; October 13; November 3; and December 8.

Del Mar Electronics Show — April 22 & 23. We’re looking forward to seeing many of you at this premier exhibition, where the surf meets the turf at the Del Mar Racing Grounds. Stop by the SoCal ERA booth to connect with the team and get the latest on upcoming events. San Diego Social — Coming this summer/early fall. Dates will be announced soon. Keep an eye on your inbox!

10th Annual SoCal ERA Golf Tournament — Save the Date: August 31. Mark your calendars. We’re heading back to Alta Vista Country Club for our annual golf tournament, and once again we’ll be proud to support Operation Homefront, a non-profit dedicated to building strong, stable and secure families for our military service members and veterans. Sponsorship opportunities and registration links will be coming your way in the weeks ahead.

Sagebrush Social — Save the Date: September 24, 5:00–7:30 p.m. Our beloved Sagebrush Social returns to the Sagebrush Cantina on September 24. This year marks the 21st anniversary of this SoCal ERA tradition; a testament to the incredible community you’ve helped build. More details to follow.

Year-End Economic Update — November 2026. We’re planning to welcome back CommerceWest Bank CEO Ivo Tjan for his annual year-end economic update, complete with a networking social before and after. Additional details will be shared as they’re confirmed.

PACIFIC NORTHWEST

Save the date for Pacific Northwest ERA’s Golf Tournament, scheduled for Friday, August 21 at Legion Memorial Golf Course in Everett, Wa. The event will raise money for Toys for Kids. More details to come!