National Pronto Association recently awarded the “Pronto Smart Choice ASE Master Automobile Technician of the Year” Award to Robert Sowards of Belden’s Automotive in San Antonio, Texas.
The award ceremony was held in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Nov. 19, 2014 at the Hyatt Regency Pier 66. Bill Maggs, President and CEO of National Pronto Association presented the award to Sowards. Ronnie Belden, manager of Belden’s, attended the ceremony as a guest of Sowards. Belden’s is serviced by Pronto member Full Service Automotive in San Antonio.
Sowards has spent 32 years as a professional service technician and has been employed by Belden’s for the last 25 years. He and his wife Wendy have four children and four grandchildren.
Sowards said his position as the Corporate Shop Foreman lets him help customers with repairs and train other technicians. He said he believes that ASE training provides him and other technicians with a sense of credibility and pride in what they do every day.
When asked why he decided to become a technician, Sowards said he “worked in a local service station when he was in high school and times were different back then, customers had high regard for those that worked on and repaired their cars.” Robert said when he realized he had the skills and knowledge to diagnose and repair vehicles and there were others who could not help,” he decided to become a technician.
The ASE Awards are presented each year by the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence to select individuals who meet all criteria established by each sponsoring organization. National Pronto established the following set of criteria for the ASE Master Technician Award; the employing service center must be a current member of the Pronto Smart Choice program, candidate must be ASE Master Certified, candidate must have taken at least one exam in the last year, and scored highest on cumulative test scores.
ASE promotes excellence in automotive repair and service and has worked since 1972 to improve the quality of vehicle repairs by testing and certifying automotive professionals. National Pronto Association is proud to support the ASE Certification initiative through its ASE reimbursement program for technicians who successfully pass their ASE exams and are employed by a Pronto Smart Choice Member Service Center.
Questions about National Pronto Association should be directed to Maggs at (817) 430-9449.
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