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“They have to have the same passion for the industry that we do.
We want to make it better—period,” Dail explains.
Serving The Association
Since 1999, Dail has served on 13 PPAI volunteer committees,
advisory councils and action groups, including the Government
Relations Action Group, Leadership Advisory Committee and the
Education, Membership and Distributors Committees. She also
served on the Conventions Advisory Council from 2002 to 2008, the
Marketing Information & Research Advisory Council from 2002 to
2005, the Promotional Apparel Advisory Council from 2001 to 2004
and the Public Relations Advisory Council from 2002 to 2004. In
2000, she took part in planning the Association’s 100th anniversary as
part of the Centennial Committee. She was also in attendance at the
first-ever PPAI Women’s Leadership Conference.
Helping The Troops
The amount of work that Dail has put into helping and com-
forting the men and women of the U.S. armed services is awe inspir-
ing. “I do tend to overdo everything,” Dail says of the time she led
others to knit 1,000 hats, scarves and socks to keep service members
warm. Since that initial donation, she’s teamed up with Operation
Gratitude to gift nearly two million individually addressed care
packages to deployed service members. Dail has also worked to coor-
dinate supplies for returning veterans and toys for service members
to give to children living amid conflict.
“I try to get as many donations as I can, both in products and
financial donations,” Dail says, adding that the industry has played a
big part. “There has hardly been a supplier that hasn’t participated.
Nobody has turned me down, ever.”
Enjoying The Fruits Of Her Labor
As a grandmother of four—two boys and two girls between the
ages of 13 and 21—Dail says it gives her peace of mind to know so
many industry colleagues. “It’s like a big family. With all my grand-
children going to college and so spread out, if something were to hap-
pen I probably know someone who could help. Not many people can
say that.”
She doesn’t knit as much nowadays, preferring to read instead.
“I’ve probably worn out four or five Kindles,” she says.
Remembering Those Who Helped Her
Though receiving the PPAI H. Ted Olson Humanitarian Award
calls to mind all of the things Dail has done for others, she can’t help
but recall what others have done for her. At her first PPAI Expo, Dail
says she knew no one. Then she met the late Janelle Nevins, former
senior vice president of Silver Springs, Maryland’s Summit Group
(UPIC: summit), member of the PPAI Board of Director’s Class of
2007 and recipient of the 2013 PPAI Woman of Achievement Award.
“She sat next to me on the shuttle and spent the whole day with me,
introducing me to people,” Dail remembers. “I could do nothing for
her. I thought, ‘Wow, I want to be her.’ That shows you the generosity
of people in our industry.”
Continued From Page 13
PROFILE
JANUARY 2015 •
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