Board of Directors

2023/2024  BOARD OF DIRECTORS

 EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE


President, Steve Gibson, Culligan - Kendallville,  and Mishawaka, IN Term – 6/24

Steve began his career as a Culligan Man in 1986 when he was hired as a sales representative in the Kendallville, Indiana dealership. In 1992, he was promoted to Sales Manager. In May 1999, Steve purchased part ownership in the dealership being promoted to Vice President/ General Manger. In April 2003, Gibson purchased the remaining interest of the company and became sole owner. Since then, the dealership has purchased additional Culligan dealerships and competitors. 

Gibson has served as President of the Tri-State Culligan Dealers Association serving Indiana, Michigan and Ohio. He has also served as President of the Indiana Water Quality Association (IWQA).  Presently, Gibson serves on the Culligan Marketing Sub Committee (MSC) and as a Board Member of CDANA.

Treasurer, Cameron Karger - Culligan Quality Water of North Central Ohio, Mansfield OH - Term 6/26

Cameron is President of Culligan Quality Water of North Central Ohio. The dealership is located in Mansfield,  and services 5 counties in the North Central Ohio area. In 1992, Cameron earned a BS in Criminal Justice from Tiffin University and graduated from the Tiffin University Police Academy. He is a 2nd generation Culligan Man and started working for his parent's dealership in 1993 as a manager of an office in Medina, OH. Soon after, he moved to Mansfield, OH and became the office manager. Over time, he moved into the role of Operations Manager and Controller which included performing all the accounting duties of the company, which at the time also included the Wooster, OH franchise. In 2000, he served as President of the Culligan Tri-State Dealers Association, which is now a chapter of .

In January 2016 he and his wife  purchased the Mansfield Franchise from his parents Donald & Roberta Karger. His wife and business partner, Traci,  with marketing plans for the business. Cameron and Traci live in Mansfield, Ohio with their two sons, Addison (16) and Aidan (11). Cameron is an avid home brewer and belongs to the Mansfield Home Brew Club. He also loves hunting and camping. 

 

First Past-President, Robert Ruhstorfer, Culligan Water Conditioning, Dallas, TX - Term 6/27

Robert (Bob) Ruhstorfer began his career in the water treatment industry in the 60's working for his father in the family business in Marlette, MI. (Yes, it is a small world, the Miller family were their neighbors!) Bob's dad often told him; "Bob, if a job is worth doing at all, it is worth doing right." This has been Bob's guiding philosophy in business. He virtually worked his way up through the business by working at every job there is. Starting off as an installer's helper and delivering salt, to eventually running the family business. In 1984, he went on to work for a major water treatment manufacturer in Chicago, not far from the Culligan headquarters. First as a Regional Manager in the Great Lakes Region, then as National Sales Manager, and in 1998, he was named President.

Bob served as President of the Water Quality Association (2002-2003) and currently serves as a member of Water Qualilty Research Foundation. In 2007, Bob was awarded WQA's International Award of Merit, and in 2009, was awarded their Lifetime Achievement Award for his service to the industry. Bob served as CDANA's President (2019-2022), which was the first three-year term in CDANA 's history thanks to COVID.

Bob tried retirement in 2008, but it didn't take. He said, "I have worked alongside and next door to the Culligan Man my entire career and have always been impressed by the quality of the brand and quality of their dealers. I consider many of them personal friends and I believe the Culligan brand holds a unique position of being the undisputed No. 1 brand in the industry for as long as anyone can remember. So, when the opportunity presented itself to become a Culligan Man and run and own the franchises in Dallas and Houston, it was a no-brainer!"

Bob resides in Saint Charles, IL with his wife Joannie (When he isn't in Texas) and has five children and eleven grandchildren.

 DIRECTORS

Robert Boerner - Culligan Southwest, Inc., San Antonio, TX – Term 6/25

Bob Boerner, President of Culligan Southwest, Inc., co-owns and operates with his sister, Kristi Stanford, four Culligan dealerships in Texas. He has been involved with Culligan since1977, learning the business from his father, Gib Boerner, and helping to carry on the Culligan tradition from its first dealer, his grandfather Wilbur L. Walton. Bob has been involved in theTexas WQA for many years, serving as its President in 1996-97and currently serving as its Legislative Co-Chair. He served on the WQA Board of Directors for 9 years and continues his involvement with them in various capacities. Bob and his wife, Debrah, have a daughter, Holly, who recently completed a Masters degree at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.


RJ Easton, The U.S. Water Culligan Group, Wheeling, IL - Term 6/27

R.J. Easton is the Director of Strategy & Business Development for The U.S. Water Culligan Group (USWCG), managing projects impacting the medium - and long-term strategy of the business. This responsibility includes projects related to sales and marketing, pricing structure, product lineup, operational efficiency, recruiting, customer retention, and mergers and acquisitions. R.J. joined USWCG in 2012 as the Director of Marketing, ultimately moving into roles that included responsibility over business development and strategy.

Prior to joining USWCG, R.J. spent four years working for Transamerica, a multinational insurance and financial planning firm. Similar to his time at the USWCG, he held marketing and business development roles, assisting insurance and financial planning offices grow their businesses. R.J. helped those offices create plans and boost sales, enhance recruitment and retention, and navigate M&A opportunities. 

Spending the bulk of his career with USWCG, R.J. has become very involved in the water treatment industry. He is an active member of the Water Quality Association, serving as Vice Chair of the Federal Government Affairs Committee and previously as Chair of the RISE Advisory Council, amongst numerous other committees and advisory councils. Additionally, he serves as a member of the Culligan Cares and on the CDANA's Next Gen Committee. 

R.J. has been married to his wife, Emily, since 2014 and has 2 sons, Graham, and Harry. He loves spending time with his family, golfing, cooking and traveling.

Camren Fleck - Westwood Enterprises Ltd., Wileville, NS - Term 6/26
Camren started working for his dad when he was 15 years old and officially took over the business in 2010 and it has steadily grown over the years since. Camren is an eternal family man with three great boys. Camren enjoys all that lake life has to offer him and his family.



CR Hall - Hall's Culligan, Wichita, KS - Term 6/25
Second generation dealer and sole owner of Hall's Culligan. Hall's Culligan has 37 dealerships in ten states with headquarters in Wichita. In addition to water treatment, he also owns Prairie Fire Coffee, which has eight locations in Kansas, Oklahoma, Missouri and Nebraska.

CR is a Past President of CDANA, Executive Board member is IBWA, Member of the downtown Wichita Rotary Club, member of leadership council of the Greater Wichita Partnership, Past President of WQA and a member of the Young Presidents Organization in Kansas.

CR enjoys spending time with his two sons, Jack (23) and Carson (19) as well as his significant other, Lindsay McClellan, who also serves as a key consultant/advisor to his businesses. Lindsay has three children: Stratton (16), Samantha (16), and Walker (12) who also bring much joy to the family. 

Chris Lane II, Low Country Water Conditioning, Hilton Head, SC - Term 6/27

Chris joined his family Culligan dealership in Hilton Head, SC after graduating from University of South Carolina - Beaufort in May of 2012. After working summers and afternoons in the dealership throughout school and college, he started as a full-time route driver and service technician, before going into sales by 2013. In 2014, he took over as Operations Manager. In 2018, he was named General Manager. He is a second generation Culligan Man and serving on the Next Generation Committee.  

Don Meredith - Meredith’s Culligan – Union Grove, WI – Term 6/26

Don is a second-generation Culligan dealer and operates two dealerships in two states, Wisconsin and Illinois.  After graduating from  of Wisconsin- Whitewater while also serving in the Wisconsin Air National Guard, he took a position in the insurance industry.  In 1980, he returned to the water treatment business. He purchased the Union Grove dealership in 1985. Don has served as President of the Water Quality Association of Wisconsin, Culligan Dealers Association of Wisconsin, Union Grove Chamber of Commerce and is currently on other local boards.  Don has served on the DAC as the Wisconsin Representative, as the SAC  and as the Commercial Subcommittee Chair. Don has served as President of . Don and his wife, Cherie, have three children, Heather, Matt and Luke.

David G. Miller -  Corporation of America, Marlette, MI – Term 6/25

Executive Vice-President of  Corporation of America, operating dealerships in Marlette, Michigan; Allegan, Michigan; Port Huron, Michigan; Flint, Michigan; La Crosse, Wisconsin; Brighton, Colorado; and Anderson, Indiana.

He is  generation Culligan Man having served as director of the Tri-State Chapter of , Past President of the Michigan Culligan Association, and past president of the Michigan Water Quality Association. Has served as the Michigan Regent to WQA (CWS-V), Secretary/Treasurer of Michigan Culligan Association, and is a member of the Culligan One 20 Group.

David has been on the  Board since 2008 and has served as President. David and wife Carla reside in Marlette and enjoy time with their two children.

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Justin Rupert, Culligan - Albion & Hillsdale, MI - Term 6/24
Justin Rupert  is the General Manager of Rupert’s Water Conditioning in Albion, MI. He has been working in the family business for four years. Justin started out in sales, and moved to GM of our Albion location in 2015. He enjoys working alongside his parents (Renne and Dennis) and wife (Mackenzie.) 


Kourtney Tarvin-Erbes, Culligan - Bloomington, IL - Term 6/24

Kourtney is the Vice President and General Manger of the Culligan Water Dealership in Bloomington, Illinois. Kourtney holds a bachelor of Science Degree from Illinois State university. Kourtney is a 3rd generation Culligan Woman following in John and Richards footsteps. She joined the business in 2003, and after graduation from ISU, worked at State Farm for 3.5 years before returning to Culligan in 2012 in a management role. Since returning to the business, Kourtney sits as a member fo the Marketing Subcommittee, BOB Advisory Board, CDANA Convention Committee, and serves as the Chair of the CDANA Next Generation Committee. Kourtney enjoys spending time with her 2-year-old daughter, Malin.