AASPMN Announces 2026 – 2027 Board of Directors
April marked the beginning of service for the 2026 – 2027 AASPMN Board of Directors. AASPMN is pleased to welcome new board members Brian Crabtree (Mike’s Repair, Inc.; St. Cloud;), Sarah Czech (Czech Auto Body, Inc.; Pierz) and Jake Moser (Collision Center 1; Golden Valley). They will join the other members of the Board, which include:
• Brandon Wistrom, (Deano’s Collision & Mechanical; Elk River) – President
• Randy Notto (Lenfer Automotive & Transmission,; Lino Lakes) – Immediate Past President
• Ashlan Kaplan (Cannon Auto Repair; Cannon Falls) – Secretary/Treasurer
• Greg Kasel (Downtown Tire & Auto; Hastings) – Mechanical Division Director
• Scott Miller (Collision Specialists; Austin) – Collision Division Director
• Andrea Ossowski (Blue Rock Refinishing Solutions; Roseville) – Associate Division Director
AASPMN also extends a sincere thank you to this year’s outgoing board members:
• Shannon Christian (Shannon’s Auto Body; Brainerd)
• Dan Gleason (Pro-Tech Auto Repair; Corcoran)
• Aaron Swanson (CARSTAR; New Hope)
Volunteers are the heart and soul of AASPMN, and we appreciate the leadership and commitment of these dedicated members.
Meet the New AASPMN Board Members
The new AASPMN Board members were introduced at the Leadership Conference on April 29 at Mystic Lake Casino. Each will serve a three-year term (April 1, 2026 to March 31, 2029). In case you missed it, here’s a little bit about a couple of them:
Jake Moser is a partner at Collision Center 1 Group where he oversees a growing portfolio of four locations across the Twin Cities. With a career spanning over 25 years, his journey in the automotive industry began at age 16, fueled by a hands-on education at Hennepin Technical College and early experience on the Ford assembly line.
Moser’s leadership style was forged through years of technical work and mentorship under the Stiele family. After transitioning from body technician to estimator, he was named general manager of Hopkins Auto Body in 2012. He eventually became a partner in 2016. Under this leadership, the business has successfully expanded into Golden Valley, Prior Lake and Maple Grove. A long-time advocate for the trade, Moser has served on the AASPMN Collision Committee for nearly a decade and is dedicated to advancing the standards and future of the collision industry.
Sarah Czech is co-owner of Czech Auto Body & Towing in Pierz. She’s spent the past 12 years in the collision industry alongside her husband, Jeff. You can pretty much guarantee that by the end of the day their conversations revolve around which insurance carrier deserves the award for “most creative way to avoid paying for proper repair.”
Over the years, she’s developed a strong focus on the insurance side of repair claims. She advocates for safe, proper, and high-quality repairs for customers and works hard to ensure they are treated fairly by insurance carriers.
Sarah stays active in the collision industry by participating in AASPMN’s central and northern Minnesota collision shop groups, as well as attending national 20 Groups to keep up with industry trends, best practices, and ongoing advancements.
She appreciates the simple things in life—spending time outdoors, traveling, family and being part of a rural community that looks out for each other.
SkillsUSA Minnesota Students Win Medals at
2026 State Workforce Development Event
Career and technical education (CTE) students from across Minnesota brought home medals and honors from the 2026 SkillsUSA Minnesota State Leadership and Skills Conference (SLSC) held March 27–28, 2026 at Wayzata High School.
This annual state championship event highlighted the talents of Minnesota’s top CTE students. A total of 568 student members from 27 schools competed in 59 trade, technical and leadership contests, showcasing the depth and diversity of skilled career pathways across the state. The culminating awards ceremony was held the evening of March 28 at Wayzata High School.
Throughout the event, students demonstrated their expertise in career-focused areas such as electronics, precision machining, culinary arts and medical assisting. Leadership competitions featured skills in extemporaneous speaking, team leadership and parliamentary procedure – highlighting the well-rounded development of tomorrow’s workforce.
All contests were conducted with the support of dedicated industry professionals, trade associations and labor organizations, ensuring each competition reflected current industry standards. Students earning top honors received gold, silver and bronze medallions, along with scholarships, tools and other career-building prizes.
Congratulations to the following automotive and collision repair students on a job well done:
Automotive Refinishing Technology (College/Postsecondary)
• Gold: Isabelle Schmidt – South Central College
• Silver: Lucas Kunstleben – St. Cloud Technical & Community College
• Bronze: Yezibel Stepp – Dakota County Technical College
Automotive Refinishing Technology (High School)
• Gold: Matthew Burg – Dakota County Technical College
• Silver: Justin Warneke – Hennepin Technical College
• Bronze: Emerson Lindberg – Dakota County Technical College
Automotive Service Technology (College/Postsecondary)
• Gold: Vincent Sohlstrom – St. Cloud Technical & Community College
• Silver: Andrew Klier – Hennepin Technical College
• Bronze: Blake Moses – Lake Superior College
Automotive Service Technology (High School)
• Gold: Simon Hafstad – St. Cloud Technical & Community College
• Silver: Clayton Etnier – Hennepin Technical College
• Bronze: Dawson Blair – Ridgewater College
Collision Damage Appraisal (College/Postsecondary)
• Gold: Isabelle Schmidt – South Central College
• Silver: Lucas Kunstleben – St. Cloud Technical & Community College
• Bronze: Quentin Dukowitz – Dunwoody College of Technology
Collision Damage Appraisal (High School)
• Gold: Justin Warneke – Hennepin Technical College
• Silver: Matthew Burg – Dakota County Technical College
• Bronze: Emerson Lindberg – St. Cloud Technical & Community College
Collision Repair Technology (College/Postsecondary)
• Gold: Ethan Ketterer – Dakota County Technical College
• Silver: JT Bisek – South Central College
• Bronze: Isabelle Schmidt – South Central College
Collision Repair Technology (High School)
• Gold: Matthew Burg – Dakota County Technical College
• Silver: Justin Warneke – Hennepin Technical College
• Bronze: Emerson Lindberg – St. Cloud Technical & Community College
Minnesota’s gold medalists will advance to the national stage at the 2026 SkillsUSA Championships, held during the National Leadership and Skills Conference in Atlanta, Georgia this June.
Attention AASPMN Members!
Update your online profile!
Earlier this year, AASPMN launched its new online Member Portal, with resources and functionality designed to add value to your membership.
The new portal includes:
• Locked member directory with enhanced member profiles. Your profile can be easily updated or added once you log in. This includes updating your company information to help customers and other members find your business.
• Online payment options for membership dues, event registration, sponsorship, MNCARS donations and more. If you haven’t paid your membership dues for this year, please pay through the Member Portal.
• Online event registration, including ways to add events to your own calendar so you never miss anything.
• Updated member resources, including a new privacy policy and other templates.
New features will also be added later this year, including:
• Member chat forums!
• Weekly emails with updates on what other members are chatting about, so you are never in the dark or on your own!
• Jobs and internship board!
Please complete your Member Profile online at aaspmn.org. Then click the Member Login button at the top of the page. Please note: Many AASPMN members are already in the portal, so please use the following login credentials before adding a new profile:
• Username: FirstLast (your name with no spaces in between)
• Password: Welcome@123
If you have any issues, please contact the AASPMN office for assistance at aasp@aaspmn.org or (612) 623-1110.
Want more? Check out the May 2026 issue of AASP-MN News!