Rick Holden Receives NWFA Honorary Vanguard Degree

Rick Holden receives an Honorary Vanguard degree from NWFA Chairman John Lessick. Photo credit: David Stluka Photography

The Honorary Vanguard degree, given to National Wood Flooring Association members who have contributed significantly to the NWFA and the wood flooring industry, was awarded at this year's Wood Flooring Expo to Derr Flooring Company's (Willow Grove, Pa.) Chief Operating Officer Rick Holden, who completed his tenure on the NWFA's executive committee during the Expo.

Holden began working for Derr Flooring after he graduated college in 1980. His 34 years with the company have been dotted with volunteer work, including many years on the NWFA board of directors and serving as its chairman from 2011-2013, a time of great transition for the NWFA.

"It was a total surprise. I never expected that I would receive the award and it has very special meaning to me," Holden said. "My grandfather, Chester Derr, received the award posthumously in 2001. To be listed in the same company as him and other recipients, many of whom I consider friends, is amazing and humbling."

Holden is currently on the board of the Hardwood Federation and the Hardwood Federation PAC.