Following the recent announcement of its 2024 Board of Directors, NKBA also disclosed the members of its additional national volunteer committees – the Chapter Leadership Committee (CLC), Leadership Recruitment Committee (LRC) and KBIS Exhibitor Committee (KEC). Volunteer committee members each serve 3-year terms, with the terms commencing on January 1, 2024.

CLC Members Updates

The newest Chapter Leadership Committee members are Kimberly Kerl, Owner & Principal Designer, Kustom Home Design; and Brianna Weiler, Vice President | Interior Designer, Kitchens by Charles Weiler. They replace Ellen Lopez, CMKBD, Founder & Creative Director of El Design Studio; and Nancy Young, CKBD, Owner & President of Nancy Young Designs.

Continuing CLC members include Nichole Cooper, Showroom Director of Middleby Residential; Sandee Mann, Sales Executive of Kohler Canada;  and Julie Schuster, Principal of Julie Schuster Design Studio. 

The Chapter Leadership Committee provides a link between the grassroots of the Association, its chapters and National Staff. They are charged with monitoring member needs and requests at the chapter level and conveying these to National staff, while also being tasked with chapter engagement initiatives and other important activations. 

LRC Members Updates

The newest Leadership Recruitment Committee members are Dr. Elmar Stumpf, Owner, Conneum GmbH; and James Brodsky, CEO, Sharp Think. They replace Katie Brockman, Founder & CEO of Katie Brockman & Co.; and David Noe, General Manager of Rev-A-Shelf.

Continuing LRC members include Kevin Dexter, President Dealer at Springs Window Fashions, who was elected 2024 LRC Chair; Jason McGraw, Group VP of CEDIA Expo & KBIS, Emerald; and Basil Larkin, SVP of Sales at Hestan Commercial Corporation. 

The Leadership Recruitment Committee is charged with identifying and screening potential members for the Board of Directors (BOD) and the Chapter Leadership Committee (CLC). They meet after national elections to review all self-nominations received during the election cycle in September. 

KEC Members Updates

The newest member for the KBIS Exhibitor Committee is Nathan Boone, COO, Green Forest Cabinetry. Rolling off the KEC in 2023 was Heather Shannon, Director of Brand Marketing at Perlick and Jason Thompson, Director of Sales at WPPO Wood Fired Ovens. 

Continuing KEC members include Katie Heany, Owner of Kitchen Branding Gifts, who was elected 2024 KEC Chair; Abigail Toal, Event Coordinator at Federal Brace; Amy Switzer, Senior Marketing Communications Manager at Emtek; Jonathan Krieger, VP of Sales & Marketing at Fabuwood Cabinetry; Massimo Ballucchi, VP Kitchen & Bath Business at Cosentino North America, and Jason Fisher, Senior Director of Global Integrated Marketing at Moen & House of Rohl.

The KBIS Exhibitor Committee provides a link between the exhibitors and attendees of KBIS, and National Staff, to ensure that their needs are being appropriately monitored and evaluated. They also advise National Staff on industry trends and make recommendations for appropriate products, programs, and services to meet the needs of the exhibitors and attendees at future KBIS’s. 

NKBA again thanks Ellen Lopez, CMKBD, Nancy Young, CKBD, Katie Brockman, David Noe, Heather Shannon, and Jason Thompson for their dedication and commitment to these important committees over the last several years!

Below is a complete list of NKBA’s three national volunteer committees for 2024.

2024 Chapter Leadership Committee

Nichole Cooper
Showroom Director
Middleby Residential
Irvine, CA

Sandee Mann
Sales Executive – Western Canada Showroom
Kohler Canada
Woodbridge, ON, Canada

Julie Schuster
Principal
Julie Schuster Design Studio
New York, NY

Kimberly Kerl
Owner & Principal Designer
Kustom Home Design
Greenville, SC

Brianna Weiler
Vice President | Interior Designer 
Kitchens by Charles Weiler
Lahaska, PA

2024 Leadership Recruitment Committee

Kevin Dexter, 2024 Chair
President Dealer
Springs Window Fashions                                          
Middleton, WI

Jason McGraw, CTS, CAE
Group Vice President
CEDIA Expo and Kitchen & Bath Industry Show (KBIS)
Atlanta, GA

Basil Larkin
Senior VP of Sales
Hestan Commercial Corporation
Anaheim, CA

James Brodsky
CEO
Sharp Think
New York, NY

Dr. Elmar Stumpf
Owner
Conneum GmbH
Oberkirch, Germany

Bill Darcy, Ex-Officio
Global President & Chief Executive Officer
National Kitchen & Bath Association
Bethlehem, PA

2024 KBIS Exhibitor Committee

Katie Heany, 2024 Chair 
Owner
Kitchen Branding Gifts
St. Louis, MO

Massimo Ballucchi
VP of Kitchen & Bath Business
Cosentino North America
Miami, FL 

Jonathan Krieger
VP of Sales & Marketing
Fabuwood Cabinetry
Newark, NJ

Amy Switzer
Senior Marketing Communications Manager
Emtek
Irwindale, CA

Abigail Toal
Event Coordinator
Federal Brace
Belmont, NC 

Jason Fisher
Sr. Director of Global Integrated Marketing
Moen & House of Rohl
Olmsted, OH 

Nathan Boone
COO
Green Forest Cabinetry
Chesapeake, VA

A Spectacular 14th Run of the Annual Peak Design Awards

It takes a full year for our Rocky Mountain Chapter to put on their annual Peak Design Awards Gala–the most prestigious design awards event in Colorado. Modeled after the NKBA’s own national Design Competition, the Peak Awards recognizes excellence in four categories: dining, living, bedroom, and specialty detail.

To accommodate a growing attendance, chapter president Delilah Collins and Events + Peak Committee Lead Amber Howard chose the event venue Social Capitol in Arvada which has an in-house caterer. The black-tie event on June 18, 2026 drew 220 attendees for this year’s theme–A Mid-Summer Soirée–which transformed the venue into an enchanting and elegant garden setting.

“The decor team absolutely nailed it,” proudly said Delilah.

The awards are open to all designers in Colorado, and NKBA members–who comprised 95% of entries–received a discounted submission rate. This year brought in a record 142 submissions. 

Judging is done by certified NKBA designers nationwide. Additionally, media sponsor Colorado Homes & Lifestyles Magazine reviews all submissions and chooses the most dramatic kitchen and bath makeovers. Over $5000 in prize money was awarded.

All designers who submit a project for consideration can also include a design board to be judged at the event by their peers in attendance.

Given their success, the Peak Committee now mentors for other chapters wanting to put on their own local awards.

“Every year there are one or two chapters that reach out to us asking about our competition, and we connect them with everything they need,” said Rocky Mountain Events Lead Amber Howard. “Right now we’re judging the Nebraska Chapter’s first design competition.”

“We’ve developed a rubric for it, including how to set up the submissions portal and determine awards categories,” added Delilah. “We share what works, and what doesn’t.”

But before they get hit with a deluge of new requests from chapters, the Rocky Mountain officers admit that putting on a design competition is no small feat, and they don’t have it all figured out.

“It’s almost a well-oiled machine,” joked Amber, “It’s having the right people in place to make it happen. But no matter what happens, it always ends up being an amazing event.”

See all the winning projects from the Peak Awards here.

A Furry Good Time at “Dogs & Design” 

We love it when NKBA members let their creativity shine by dreaming up amazing events, and this was certainly the case with “Dogs & Design” hosted by our Texas North Plains Chapter.   

“I’m a huge dog lover,” said Programs Chair Nicole Raynes, “And there are so many people in our chapter who love dogs, have dogs, or have done designs for dogs. It’s a fun niche in our community–designing for dogs.”

The elements for the event quickly crystallized in Nicole’s mind. Choosing Daltile Dallas as the venue was easy, as tile is a #1 material sourced when designing for dogs, and their showroom is also close to the Dallas Animal Services Shelter–which shared insights about the shelter and ways to help in addition to contributing to the event’s DAS Shelter donation drive.

For the featured experts, Jenifer Wiley, owner of J Wiley Designs, was a natural–she has designed several projects for dogs, including showers, built-in dog bowls and crates, and a sofa with a scooped out back so a client’s pooch could comfortably peer out the window without damaging the piece.

Adding to the guest panel were dog-friendly designers Dana Bass, owner of Dana Bass Designs, and Heidi Arwine, owner of Heidi Arwine Interiors, and dog trainer Taylor Massey, owner of Six Packs & Dog Packs Training, who shared practical dog psychology designers can use when they visit clients’ homes.

The event brought in 50 attendees (all human) and included complimentary custom pet doodles by Dallas-based sketch artist Groovy Zuky. To make the logistics easier, everyone who RSVP’d for the event could email a photo of their pet ahead of time and pick up their artwork the day of the event. It worked out beautifully, as Groovy Zuky received 15 additional requests during the event itself. 

This being Texas, guests nibbled on Mexican food and also had the opportunity to build mini animal figurines with Lego-style bricks.

A Ted Lasso-Inspired Summer Social As International As It Gets

With Houston playing host to the World Cup, Lisa Slappey had a cheeky idea.

The Silver Sponsor and former secretary of the Texas Gulf Coast Chapter envisioned a summer social where people could cheer and chill … and that’s how the idea for a Ted Lasso-inspired watch party was born.

“Houston is an extremely diverse city. We have people here from all over the world, and there has been tremendous excitement for the World Cup,” said Lisa, who with business partner Mehdi Abedi owns Pride of Persia Rug Co. & Postmodern Traditions, where the watch party was held on June 23rd. “We wanted to have a low-stress summer gathering to connect local industry peers, and we wanted to encourage people who didn’t know much about soccer to come watch, hence the Ted Lasso theme.”

For those not familiar with the popular comedy series by the same name, Lasso was an American football coach hired to coach an English football team. True to the show, the event featured “Biscuits With the Boss” (shortbread cookies), and a “Believe” sign amidst decorations of soccer balls and international flags. Guests were encouraged to wear team colors. Around 50 people showed up, including many new faces. Team jerseys abounded, and one guest even made a referee costume.

A new TV and a wall projector were used to broadcast the England v Ghana and Panama v Croatia matches. Dinner included Persian specialities made by Mehdi Abedi.

You might be wondering: just how did a Persian rug company get into NKBA? 

“We had some wonderful NKBA leaders in the community who kept inviting me to events,” recalled Lisa. “I put a lot of rugs in kitchens and baths, and it occurred to me that I should know what designers are doing in kitchens and baths! A whole new aspect of design opened up to me when I joined NKBA, and I have been an advocate since–especially for our student members.”