Marie Horner Recognized as PestVets ‘Veteran of the Year’

WASHINGTON — Marie Horner, Arrow Exterminators, Atlanta, Ga., was recognized as the fifth PestVets ‘Veteran of the Year,’ during NPMA Legislative Day, on Monday.

A veteran of the United States Air Force, Horner has been involved in the pest control industry for nearly 20 years, including the last five with Arrow Exterminators, where she serves as vice president of government affairs and industry stewardship at Arrow Exterminators.

FMC’s Tom Wharton recognized Horner, the first female recipient of the award, prior to the Legislative Day luncheon and keynote debate featuring Anna Palmer and Jake Sherman, noting that Horner is “dedicated to supporting homeless and disabled veterans through her volunteer work at Servant Center, a non-profit transitional housing programming dedicated to improving the lives of veterans, and giving back as a mentor to the Queen’s Foundation,” a statewide non-profit to help transform the lives of young, underserved middle and high school women in North Carolina.

Arrow Exterminators CEO Emily Thomas Kendrick accepted the award for Horner, who was unable to attend because she had recently fractured her heel after a misstep that occurred while she was filming cockroaches.

NPMA’s PestVets committee was created five years ago and its goal is to promote the recruitment of veterans to member companies and supports those recruitment efforts through various education and training opportunities.

Prior to the presentation, NPMA CEO Dominique Stumpf discussed NPMA’s PestVets program, noting that for this year’s PestVets “Day of Service” at PestWorld, the group did clean up work on the USS Midway in San Diego.