Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
John Fleming Named Honorary Chair of 21st Dublin Irish Festival
Dublin, Ohio (February 14, 2008) –The Dublin Irish Festival will be in good spirits this year as Superior Beverage Group President and Chief Executive Officer John T. Fleming serves as Honorary Chair of the Dublin Irish Festival.
Selected by former Dublin Irish Festival honorary chairs and Dublin City Manager Jane Brautigam, Fleming was chosen for his support of Irish culture and the Dublin Irish Festival, the City of Dublin and the Central Ohio community.
In this role, Fleming will preside over festivities surrounding the 21st annual Dublin Irish Festival, and he will serve as an official host for members of the Emerald Club and as a spokesperson and ambassador for the Festival.
Other official roles include starting the Run at the Dub Crawl on Thursday, July 31, opening the Festival on Friday, August 1 and closing it Sunday, August 3. Throughout the weekend Fleming will throw the first dart in the Annual Dart Competition and partner with Skelley the Leprechaun to judge the reddest hair and greenest eyes contests.
"I am humbled to be chosen Honorary Chair of the Dublin Irish Festival. I am especially pleased to serve in this role for an event that has been a personal favorite of mine and all of us at Superior Beverage Group for as long as I can remember,” said Fleming.
Throughout the past 20 years, Fleming has held various positions in operations, sales and finance. Superior Beverage Group is a beer and wine wholesaler servicing nearly 9,300 retailers in 33 Ohio counties.
Fleming is also Vice President of the Wholesale Beer and Wine Association of Ohio. He is a member of the Coors/Central Ohio Division Distributor Council and has served on many other supplier councils. Fleming is also a member of the Young President’s Organization.
“Superior Beverage has been a tremendous event partner whose contributions include a dedicated staff, marketing support and even our own special brand, Dublin Stout,” said Community Relations Director Sandra Puskarcik. “We appreciate the relationship that we have built with Superior Beverage under John’s leadership and we are delighted to have John serve as Honorary Chair.”
Fleming joins a prestigious group of past Irish Festival Honorary Chairs, including Denny Lynch of Wendy’s International (1997); Terry O’Connell of Time Warner Communications (1998); Terry Tindel, formerly with Verizon Wireless (1999); Mike Kelty of The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (2000); Ron Geese of Continental Office Environments (2001); Don Hunter of Duke Realty Corporation (2002); Dave D’Antoni of Ashland, Inc (2003); Mike Kehoe of AT&T (2004); Tom Thon of ClearChannel Columbus Radio (2005) and Cheryl Herbert of Dublin Methodist Hospital/OhioHealth (2006); and Dan Sullivan of the Memorial Tournament (2007).
For additional information about Superior Beverage Group, visit www.superiorbeveragegroup.com.
About the Dublin Irish Festival
The Dublin Irish Festival, set on 27 rolling acres just north of Columbus, Ohio, is one of the nation’s premiere Irish festivals and a central Ohio tradition. Dublin is home of the Jack Nicklaus championship golf course, Muirfield Village Golf Club, and just a few miles from the Columbus Zoo & Aquarium. More than 100,000 visitors are expected for the 21st annual Dublin Irish Festival August 1-3, 2008.
To date, 2008 Festival sponsors include Superior Beverage Group, Wendy’s International, Inc., Cardinal Health, Interstate Gas Supply, Bob Evans Farms, and Nationwide Children’s Hospital, Crowne Plaza Hotel, O’Neil Tents and Party Supplies and Live Technologies, Inc., For more information, please visit DublinIrishFestival.org.
# # #
Media Contact:
Mary Jo DiSalvo, Media Contact, 614-410-4507, mdisalvo@dublin.oh.us
