Goodbyes are never easy. And no one wants to see Mike Johnson, president and CEO of the National Stone, Sand & Gravel Association (NSSGA), go.
Unfortunately for the industry, that time has arrived for Johnson, whose organization unveiled his plans to depart NSSGA in recent days.
With Oct. 11 being Johnson’s final day at NSSGA, I reached out to leaders across the industry to capture their perspective on his legacy there. The consensus is Johnson leaves NSSGA a better, stronger and more effective association following his 11 years at the helm.
Ward Nye, chairman, president and CEO of Martin Marietta, is among those to make such a case. Nye chaired the search committee that ultimately hired Johnson in 2013. Nye also served as NSSGA chairman during Johnson’s first year on the job.
“Early in his tenure, Mike very ably led us through a meaningful strategic planning process that has since helped consistently set the tone for the balance of his time at NSSGA,” Nye says. “Due to Mike’s vision, leadership and plan execution, our association is stronger, more effective and more durable than ever before.
“He instinctively knew that advocacy was our association’s top priority – and by and through his fidelity to that notion, today we have more members, a better grassroots network, a leading PAC and a great team in Washington,” Nye adds. “That’s quite a legacy.”
Like Nye, Paul Mellott Jr. is appreciative of the leadership Johnson provided. Mellott also served on the search committee that selected Johnson.
To Mellott, the decision before that group was clear.
“When we picked him out of probably nine people, we all knew this was the best guy,” Mellott says. “We needed to have the best guy, and he took off.”
As Mellott describes, Johnson made NSSGA a force to be reckoned with.
“The biggest thing Mike has done [is] we are well known on the floor of the House and the Senate,” Mellott says. “He has so many relationships with members of Congress. I’m impressed with what he got done.”
Bond Construction Corp.’s Karen Hubacz, who became the first chairwoman of NSSGA in 2022, credits Johnson with bringing unity to the association.
“We are one,” says Hubacz, president and CEO of Bond Construction. “Before, I think there was a much larger separation between large, medium and small producers. Now, because of him, I think we speak very uniformly together as a very close-knit association.
“I think he set the bar high,” Hubacz adds, “and that’s where we want to keep it.”
In his time, Johnson was also a friend and partner to Pit & Quarry. He supported the growth of the Pit & Quarry Hall of Fame, and everyone on our staff looked forward to his remarks each year at the Pit & Quarry Roundtable & Conference.
Johnson will be missed around these circles, but we wish him the best and applaud him for elevating our industry to higher ground.
