{"id":18788,"date":"2016-06-17T09:23:46","date_gmt":"2016-06-17T16:23:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/?p=18788"},"modified":"2016-06-17T09:23:46","modified_gmt":"2016-06-17T16:23:46","slug":"thomas-a-russo-named-first-inductee-into-bta-hall-of-fame","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/news\/2016\/06\/thomas-a-russo-named-first-inductee-into-bta-hall-of-fame\/","title":{"rendered":"Thomas A. Russo Named First Inductee into BTA Hall of Fame"},"content":{"rendered":"

Award given to Museum of Business History and Technology founder<\/em><\/p>\n

Kansas City, Mo. \u00be On Friday, June 10, during the BTA at 90: A Celebration event at Kansas City Union Station in Kansas City, Missouri, Thomas A. Russo Sr. was announced as the first inductee into the newly created BTA Hall of Fame. Though Russo was not able to attend BTA\u2019s 90th anniversary celebration, 2015-16 BTA President-Elect Rob Richardson presented him with the award in person on May 20 at the Thomas A. Russo Museum of Business History and Technology (MBHT) in Wilmington, Delaware. A video of the presentation was played during the BTA at 90: A Celebration event.<\/p>\n

\u201cTonight I am pleased to announce the newly created BTA Hall of Fame,\u201d said Richardson at the June 10 event. \u201cOur intent, of course, is to recognize individuals whose contribution to the office technology industry is far reaching and exemplary. As we considered the possibilities, the name of one individual quickly rose to the top of the list\u2026Ladies and gentleman, it is an honor for me to announce the first inductee into the BTA Hall of Fame: Thomas A. Russo Sr.\u201d<\/p>\n

Russo was the national president of NOMDA (now BTA) in 1985-86. During his presidency, he was instrumental in returning the association\u2019s headquarters to Kansas City, Missouri, helping to locate the building that serves as BTA\u2019s home today. He also helped manage the move from Wood Dale, Illinois, to the new building in Kansas City. In addition, he was instrumental in the development of an office equipment museum that was housed for a period of time at BTA\u2019s headquarters. In 2001, Russo established his own museum in the building that housed his office technology dealership, Delaware Business Equipment.<\/p>\n

The Thomas A. Russo Museum of Business History and Technology is recognized by historians and collectors around the world for its unique collection of office equipment. According to the museum\u2019s website, its exhibits \u201cfocus on change, impact and the process of invention that transforms a compelling collection of artifacts into a means to demonstrate the power of technology on society and our lives.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTo be remembered by BTA at this stage of my life is a wonderful experience that I never thought I would have again,\u201d Russo said. \u201cTo have BTA President-Elect Rob Richardson present BTA\u2019s first Hall of Fame trophy to me \u2014 with my family looking on \u2014 was a moment of pride that everyone should experience. To say \u2018thank you\u2019 does not really describe my elation and gratitude for being the first inductee into BTA\u2019s Hall of Fame, but I will say it anyway: Thank you, BTA, for this wonderful honor that you have bestowed on me and my family.\u201d<\/p>\n

To watch a tour of the museum and an interview with Russo, visit www.bta.org\/ThomasRusso. To watch the award presentation video shown at the June 10 event in Kansas City, visit www.bta.org\/HallofFame16Video.<\/p>\n

Founded in 1926, the Business Technology Association serves office technology dealerships, resellers, manufacturers, distributors and service companies. Its core members \u2014 office technology dealerships \u2014 consult, sell and service hardware, software and supplies with the primary goal of helping businesses optimize business document and information workflows. Through the association’s various educational programs, information, research, legal services,\u00a0publications\u00a0and guidance, BTA member dealerships are positioned to be the premier source of the office technology used by businesses throughout the United States every day.\u00a0For more information on BTA, see its Web site at www.bta.org or call (800) 505-2821. The fax number is (816) 941-4838. You may also write to: BTA, 12411 Wornall Road, Kansas City, MO 64145.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Award given to Museum of Business History and Technology founder Kansas City, Mo. \u00be On Friday, June 10, during the BTA at 90: A Celebration event at Kansas City Union Station in Kansas City, Missouri, Thomas A. Russo Sr. was announced as the first inductee into the newly created BTA Hall of Fame. Though Russo was not able to attend BTA\u2019s 90th anniversary celebration, 2015-16 BTA President-Elect Rob Richardson presented him with the award in person on May 20 at the Thomas A. Russo Museum of Business History and Technology (MBHT) in Wilmington, Delaware. A video of the presentation was played during the BTA at 90: A Celebration event. \u201cTonight I am pleased to announce the newly created BTA Hall of Fame,\u201d said Richardson at the June 10 event. \u201cOur intent, of course, is to recognize individuals whose contribution to the office technology industry is far reaching and exemplary. As we considered the possibilities, the name of one individual quickly rose to the top of the list\u2026Ladies and gentleman, it is an honor for me to announce the first inductee into the BTA Hall of Fame: Thomas A. Russo Sr.\u201d Russo was the national president of NOMDA (now BTA) in 1985-86. During his presidency, he was instrumental in returning the association\u2019s headquarters to Kansas City, Missouri, helping to locate the building that serves as BTA\u2019s home today. He also helped manage the move from Wood Dale, Illinois, to the new building in Kansas City. In addition, he was instrumental in the development of an office equipment museum that was housed for a period of time at BTA\u2019s headquarters. In 2001, Russo established his own museum in the building that housed his office technology dealership, Delaware Business Equipment. The Thomas A. Russo Museum of Business History and Technology is recognized by historians and collectors around the world for its unique collection of office equipment. According to the museum\u2019s website, its exhibits \u201cfocus on change, impact and the process of invention that transforms a compelling collection of artifacts into a means to demonstrate the power of technology on society and our lives.\u201d \u201cTo be remembered by BTA at this stage of my life is a wonderful experience that I never thought I would have again,\u201d Russo said. \u201cTo have BTA President-Elect Rob Richardson present BTA\u2019s first Hall of Fame trophy to me \u2014 with my family looking on \u2014 was a moment of pride that everyone should experience. To say \u2018thank you\u2019 does not really describe my elation and gratitude for being the first inductee into BTA\u2019s Hall of Fame, but I will say it anyway: Thank you, BTA, for this wonderful honor that you have bestowed on me and my family.\u201d To watch a tour of the museum and an interview with Russo, visit www.bta.org\/ThomasRusso. To watch the award presentation video shown at the June 10 event in Kansas City, visit www.bta.org\/HallofFame16Video. Founded in 1926, the Business Technology Association serves office technology dealerships, resellers, manufacturers, distributors and service companies. Its core members \u2014 office technology dealerships \u2014 consult, sell and service hardware, software and supplies with the primary goal of helping businesses optimize business document and information workflows. Through the association’s various educational programs, information, research, legal services,\u00a0publications\u00a0and guidance, BTA member dealerships are positioned to be the premier source of the office technology used by businesses throughout the United States every day.\u00a0For more information on BTA, see its Web site at www.bta.org or call (800) 505-2821. The fax number is (816) 941-4838. You may also write to: BTA, 12411 Wornall Road, Kansas City, MO 64145.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":67,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[86],"tags":[127],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18788"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/67"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18788"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18788\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18789,"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18788\/revisions\/18789"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18788"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18788"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18788"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}