Meet the New ILCA Board Officers

Meet the New ILCA Officers

by Meta L. Levin Meet the new ILCA offi-

cers: Scott McAdam, Jr, president; Jeff Kramer, vice president and Ashley Marrin, secretary-treasurer. They may look young, but they bring a wealth of experience, energy and expertise to their new offices.

President Scott McAdam Jr.

Looking at his term as ILCA’s new president, Scott McAdam Jr. is taking a lesson from his own past.

“I’ve always had my Dad and industry connections,” says McAdam Jr. “A lot of people can’t say that. I was surrounded by a team who guided me and as an association I would like to be able to provide that guidance for members who need it.”

He sees that kind of mentoring as good for the industry as a whole, as well as individual companies. “The more healthy, professional companies we have, the better the industry will be,” he says.

McAdam Jr.’s roots in ILCA are deep. His father, W. Scott McAdam served two terms as ILCA president – in 1992-1993 and again in 1998-1999 – and McAdam Jr. began attending ILCA events when he was young. Even so, he wasn’t sure he wanted to go into the family business, McAdam Landscaping, Inc.

Instead, he originally thought he’d major in political science in college, but the College of Agriculture, Consumer and Environmental science was his entry into the University of Illinois at UrbanaChampaign. He wasn’t sure he wanted to stay there, but his sophomore year a professor of dendrology (trees) changed his mind and he transferred into horticulture. If it hadn’t been for that professor, he admits he wouldn’t be in the landscape industry.

Although his father never exerted pressure on McAdam Jr. to go into the business, he did allow him to work in the

garden center during the summers. “He let me figure out my life’s career path on my own,” he says. Now McAdam Jr. serves as the business’ Director of Sales and Marketing.

Once into the business, McAdam Jr. was encouraged to get active in ILCA. During high school he played golf regularly as part of his high school golf team. In 2010 he joined the ILCA golf committee at the suggestion of then ILCA president Bob Bertog. By 2015 he became the committee chair and in 2017 he joined the ILCA Board of Directors.

McAdam Jr. sees some challenges ahead for his tenure as ILCA president. Labor issues are ongoing. He believes it is important to find new ways of workforce development, as a means of helping companies recruit more labor. “I’m hoping our apprenticeship pilot program

Scott McAdam, Jr. at the College of Lake County is a success,” he says. “Labor truly is our main challenge. We can sell as much as we like, but we need people to produce the work.” He also believes that there are some legislative issues on the horizon in the next couple of years.

There also may be some local ordinances that will affect the industry.

“The Board and the association are conscious of things that may be on the horizon.” “We are trying to do business in a vastly different work environment,” he says, pointing to climate change and other concerns. During the pandemic, landscape contractors were, by and large, able to operate safely. “A lot of credit goes to the businesses that were able to keep their employees safe.” He also wants to show members and potential members the value the association provides, including education opportunities. “We always are on the leading edge,” he says.

“Information is power.”

He also wants to grow outreach and engage the LatinX group. “It is a huge component of our industry,” he says. “They are business owners and workers.”

Married for five years, he has a 2 ½ year old daughter and his wife is pregnant with number two, a boy, due in October. He still plays golf when he has time.

In the end, McAdam Jr. sees his ILCA work as shared. “President is a title,” he says. “At the end of the day, I am one person on a board of 12. What the board and the association staff do is a collaborative effort with the benefit of the membership in mind.”

Jeff Kramer ILCA Vice President

When Jeff Kramer first became involved with ILCA, he never thought about being an officer. He was asked to join the board, he says, because “they needed a tree person.” That was three years ago.

Now Kramer, who has been around ILCA for most of his life, is the new ILCA Vice President. His father and mother founded Kramer Tree Specialists 47 years ago and joined ILCA nearly 20 years ago. It’s a membership Kramer and his brother have continued since they took over the business in 2018.

“We have been a part of a lot of organizations, but by far ILCA has been a leader,” he says, ticking off the support available, as well as The Landscape Contractor magazine and programs as important to him. “There’s an unlimited wealth of knowledge. ILCA has the best membership of any organization.”

A certified arborist, Kramer also has been an Illinois Arborist Association (IAA), where he has taught classes needed for certification, as well as the Tree Care Industry Association (TCIA) and the International Society of Arboriculture (ISA).

He has competed in the Illinois and International Tree Climbing Championships, winning the Illinois competition seven years in a row, as well as competing all over the country and in Europe. He has served as a lead judge for Illinois.

As a part of ILCA, he has used his expertise to oversee the pruning classes. “It’s exciting during the pandemic to carry on with those,” he says. ILCA was able to offer the popular classes last year, because they are held outdoors.

Turning his attention to his tenure as vice president, Kramer wants to get more involved with the ILCA members, as well as “doing what I can to help.”

He has liked working around trees since he was a young boy. At 12-yearsold he would sharpen chain saws for his father and by 1984 he was working part time, moving to full time in 1988, working in the field before moving into sales. Now vice president of Kramer Tree Specialists, he still helps with sales, as well as works with the company’s department heads.

Kramer has been married to his wife, Sharon, for 22 years. They have four children, evenly split – two girls and two boys, ages 20 to 33. So far, none have indicated an interest in the family business. One is a mechanical engineer, another is in public health, another is a manager in retail and the youngest is in college, where he is focused on music.

The family likes boating on the

Jeff Kramer Mississippi river. They have a cabin in Galena, IL, where they go to relax, hike and boat. A few times a year they go to Florida, as well as visit Colorado to visit their children. He likes being around people, especially the friends he has met in

ILCA. “Very few people leave the industry,” he says. “I like that I see them again and again.”

Ashley Marrin ILCA SecretaryTreasurer

Ashley Marrin was excited and humbled to be asked to serve as

ILCA’s Secretary-Treasurer for the 2021-22 year. “I didn’t expect it,” she says. An ILCA Board member since 2019 and co-chair of the membership committee before that, she is ready to jump right in and take on her new duties. In fact, as business manager of the family landscape company, Bret-Mar Landscape, Inc., she is used to handling the financials, accounting and other aspects of the business, giving her the kind of experience she will need.

During her two years on the ILCA board, she has served as board liaison for the membership committee and has been an active member of the board consumer marketing subcommittee.

She initially became involved with ILCA after watching the association honor Bret-Mar Landscape for its 25 years of membership. Intrigued, she approached ILCA Executive Director Scott Grams about becoming involved. He sent her a list of committees, highlighting the membership committee. She took his advice and joined, working her way up to co-chair. (continued on page 52)

Ashley Marrin (continued from page 51)

Outside of her professional activities, Marrin is an avid equestrian, competing on the Illinois Class A Circuit in the hunter-jumper category. She was so serious about her horseback riding that when applying to colleges she insisted that any school give her an opportunity to compete and originally told her parents that she wanted to be a horse trainer.

Her parents, however, suggested that she keep her interest in horses as a hobby. She listened and earned a Bachelor of Science in agriculture with a specialization in landscape architecture, minoring in business management and equine science.

Marrin loves the outdoors, something she shares with her husband, Tim, an electrical engineer. They enjoy hiking and fishing and have two dachshund dogs and a 10-month-old beagle pup. Marrin is training the beagle to compete on agility courses, which consists of navigating various obstacles, from jumps and tunnels to weave poles. “A lot of horse people do dog agility,” she says. “She loves it.”

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