AJ Casio – Coastal Region
My name is AJ Cascio. I’m originally from Baltimore MD and now reside in Wilmington NC. I have lived throughout North Carolina over the past 15 years, from Charlotte to Greensboro and now on the coast. I have always been fascinated by cars since I was old enough to walk. Growing up with such a passion led me to NASCAR Technical Institute where I perfected my craft and headed off to Volkswagen to start my career as an automotive technician. Fast forward 15 years and here we are today, 10 years of experience working in the Audi/VW aftermarket performance sector and now in my dream role as a build designer for a speed shop called National Speed with 2 locations and expanding fast. I have owned countless Audi/VW vehicles from numerous Golfs and GTI’s, a MK6 R as well as a Touareg TDI, as far as the Audi cars I have owned, it’s been quite a different adventure, countless B5 A4’s and S4’s (my Noggy with the sport interior will always be my favorite) to MQB S3’s and now currently a B9 SQ5. My passion is in the car culture, I love helping people fall in love with the machine. Whether that’s sitting at a cars and coffee with great people and amazing cars or at 7K RPM’s while navigating through the slaloms of T13 at VIR, it’s my passion. I’d love to see this chapter thrive in a world where people hardly have time for anything extra curricular, help people connect with others that share the same passion.
Anna Clark – Charlotte Region
I’ve been a member within the Audi Club Carolinas for nearly three years, what started as a Google search has ended up being a really enjoyable experience meeting all sorts of friendly people who are just excited about their cars. I married into a very Audi loyal family which wasn’t a stretch as I grew up with a VW Corrado in the garage. We’ve loved various Audis ranging from the ’04 A4 which got a new engine the month after we got married, our “preservation project” ’01 A8L, to the ’19 E-tron that is now my daily driver. There’s something so wonderfully honest about folks when they talk about their cars, their planned modifications, their current grumbles, and their excitement when they get behind the wheel and I love being involved in a group of like minded folks.
I’ve been an active board member since serving at NC State for the Society of Women Engineers as their Treasurer and President. I now hold the President position for my neighborhood HOA after serving in other capacities. I see any board position, or leadership position, as an act of service that ensures that the needs of the larger body of members is enacted, be it through events, communication, expansion of community involvement, or growth of membership. My particular board interest lies in helping the Social Events and Charity committee. As car enthusiasts, we have a particular opportunity to reframe car culture into an open and inclusive space, where events can be fun, varied, and rewarding. I’d like to be given that opportunity to help serve the Carolina’s chapter of the Audi Club and to help continue to provide a place where folks can feel welcomed to gather to enjoy their Audis.
Fischer Colvin – Charlotte Region
Hi I’m Fischer Colvin. I am the representative for the Columbia area of the ACC. I currently own a B7A4 with a 2.0t, I previously owned a 1988 Audi 90q. I am running for the events and charities board member position, I would like to see the club work with charities like the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and other children focused foundations. Maybe a poker run style event of a raffle to raise money and awareness. I am planning on quite a few events in the Columbia area and I am involved with the Queen City Quattro group quite frequently. The Columbia area is untapped and I currently am working to change that and to expand our Audi family for the best.
Paul Durst- Mountain Region
My name is Paul Durst, and I have been a member of ACNA and Audi Club Carolinas since the spring of 2020, after I purchased my dream car, an 8J TTRS. When Audi first announced in 2011 they were bringing the TTRS to the USA for a limited run of 2 years, and only in a manual, I vowed to treat myself after my retirement from 26 years in the Air Force. When my retirement day arrived, life had changed dramatically for me, and my priorities shifted for the time being. I eventually gave up ever finding one with low miles, until literally stumbling across a Misano Red one with only 12,500 miles on it in February 2020. My life had settled down to where I could purchase it, and I haven’t regretted it for one moment since! I jumped right into the Audi Club scene, and remember our first club drive up the Devil’s Whip that March. My wife, Ronnie, and I immediately felt welcome, and fast friends were made that day, in more ways than one, as proven by our recent Club track day experience! We participated in Treffen 2020, and are registered for this year’s event as well. We love the camaraderie, and variety of events where we get to meet up with friends.
As a medevac pilot, I am only scheduled to work two weeks every month, although sometimes I elect to work more. This leaves me with plenty of time to devote to Club business. I am scheduled to lead a Club drive in the middle of August in the Upstate region. I am good friends with a number of local car-related business owners, to include an APR Certified Audi performance/repair shop, a wrap specialist, and several detail/paint correction shops, all located in the Greenville area. I assisted one of those businesses with a high-end car show in a beautiful wedding venue locally last December, coordinating to donate all the parking proceeds to a Rock Hill charity, the 809 Foundation, which was formed in the memory of fallen police officer Mike Doty.
I look forward to the opportunity to be able to bring the Audi Club Carolinas into more of these events in the Greenville area!
Jessica Ewing – Charlotte Region
To say I love Audi and the club is an understatement, heck I even have an Audi tattoo. I grew up driving VWs and graduated into my first Audi in 2004, I purchased a ‘01 S4 in Nogaro blue. Ironically enough our latest Audi purchased is a ‘18 RS5 in Nogaro Blue with Lunar Silver interior. My heart just beats faster for a fast blue Audi, loud exhaust and turbo/supercharger noises are a bonus of course. Someone recently asked me what my escape was and my go to answer is driving. I love to cruise country and mountain roads as much as possible and it’s even more fun when I lead a group. I have been on a few track days including a Audi Sport Driving Experience where I got to drive a 2017 R8 V10 Plus, it was amazing.
My professional background is in banking; I’m currently a branch manager for a local community bank. I have been the main person handling the chapters financial records since I was invited to serve on our board in 2015 when Dale Whitney formed our Chapter and will gladly continue to do so. I have served as our VP of Administration until early this year when Dale gave his resignation and I became Interim President until the end of this election period. I would like to volunteer to serve as chair on our Social Events Committee, I started organizing a Coastal Tour that unfortunately was delayed but I want that to happen in 2022. Treffen has been one of my favorite annual events and am eager to get planning for next year so we can explore great roads, mingle together and enjoy good food. I think our Chapter is truly unique and have enjoyed helping our club grow into what it is today. For this next year I want to focus on having our first Coastal Tour and keep our Fall Treffen thriving. In closing I would really like to say I’ve enjoyed my time serving the club, I’ve created life long friends that have become family. I’m not finished working towards continuing the growth and success of our Chapter and would be honored to continue to serve on the board.
Damon Gann – Triad Region
I’m Damon Gann, the current Triad area director, for Audi Club Carolinas. I live in Greensboro, NC. I organize events in the Greensboro/Winston-Salem area. I’ve been an Audi Club member since 2018, and held this position since also. I’ve enjoyed meeting new enthusiasts, and making new friends. When I started, there were no structured Audi events in the area. I started with nothing, and slowly built what is today, a very successful Audi presence in the area. One enthusiast at a time, I networked and kept building. I successfully run a monthly meet, Quatttros & Coffee, and a special interest Audi culture, Facebook & Instagram page also. Today, there are approximately 200-300 local Audi enthusiasts, that enjoy our local events, many of which are Audi Club members also. Meets, drives, etc, are among the many events we attend. I have also successfully brought on several sponsors to the club as well. Each sponsor brings great value and benefits to the club, and fans, along with their own specialties. I hope to continue assisting and growing the local Audi scene, to supplement my love and passion, for Audis, and cars.
Josh Giesey – Charlotte Region
We make a pretty damn good family. For all of our flaws, strengths, failures and successes, we surely do. We live in a wild world these days of unpredictability, and I believe that the four rings are a symbol of the unity that makes the world spin a little better for the people who become a part of it.
My name is Joshua. My friends call me Josh. The ladies call me Joshie. Thanks Mom. Audi Lover. Car lover. People lover. I’m going to try something a little old, and something new for you. I’ve witnessed a lot clubs in my years. I enjoy observing people in their passions. I’ve been welcomed into clubs with open arms and genuinely enjoy my time with a diversified bunch. I tend to move through them finding myself enjoying the company rather than the specific activity, from roller-skating to hookah-bars.
The Audi Club for me is different. It always keeps me coming back for more. Drama, conflict, and misunderstandings aside, it satisfies a complexity of passions that I have yet to experience anywhere else. I attribute that to the incredible people that make it what it is. I have developed lifelong friendships that have shaped me in incredible ways in such short periods of time.
From the newcomer to the longest running member, it is the welcoming acceptance and inviting opportunity to bring people together. All over a brand we are excited about, nostalgic about, passionate about, driven toward, and driven forward by. We share stories, we share laughs, we create moments worth savoring and memories worth capturing. We find a place to call Home with people that we genuinely care about.
I would love the opportunity to filter the input of what members desire most, mixed in with genuine surprise, enjoyment, and quality of time. For some of us, this club is our greatest adventure, and I’d love to help us find the route and maybe fill in a little of the scrapbook. To be a representative that shares this family with people that understand what we try to create with every gathering.
As for who I am personally, find me at an Audi Club event, introduce yourself, tell me a story, and I’ll tell mine. I promise it’ll be a good time.
John Gonter – Charlotte Region
I have been an Audi Club member since 2015. About two months after my family relocated from Ohio to North Carolina, we joined our first Carolinas meet. We’ve been hooked ever since. The thing I tell everyone about Audi Club is that the people make it great. The club has become an extended family for me, especially with my wife, two daughters, and my mother all joining in quite often, and usually insisting on driving themselves in their own Audis.
When I learned that the Charlotte area director position was open in 2016, I immediately volunteered to help. Since that time, my top priorities have been to grow our community in Charlotte and Carolinas as a whole, and to create a bigger and better online/social media community for our chapter– updating the website and Facebook often, and bringing our chapter to Instagram. I wanted to make our club feel more inclusive and modern, as our demographic is one of the most diverse within the European car club communities. As both the Charlotte Area Director and a Board Director for our Chapter, I have strived to create and support the types of events that our members want to attend across the Carolinas. These have included everything from drives in the mountains, events at local sponsors or businesses, brewery meets, pushing for a coastal tour, and even our first track day. While I’m proud of everything our chapter has been able to accomplish, I believe we still have much work to do, including more charity drives, more collaborative area meets, and more track days/driver education events. Just because something is going well doesn’t mean it can’t be improved upon. We need to bring more effort in areas like SE NC and most of SC and help increase engagement in those communities. Support volunteers and members by bringing more of the bigger city style events to these areas. If all areas have support and local events the entire club is better for it. Local communities vary throughout the Carolinas, what works in one area may not in another. We need the structure to be able to cater to the local appetite on events.
To help further an inclusive Audi community, I spearheaded our member of the month feature, which recognizes some our most active members throughout the Carolinas. I also pioneered the Queens of Quattro program to support and develop female leadership within our chapter, with goal of providing unique experiences for female Audi owners and enthusiasts.
When I began volunteering with our chapter in 2016 we had approximately 260 members. With the help of our leaders and area directors, we are now over 550! I love going to events and seeing new faces but it is even better when you see those faces that have become friends over time.
Tara Johnson – Mountain Region
I became an Audi owner in 2019 and quickly fell in love! I knew that Audi ownership had the potential for much more than just a daily driver. My first club sanctioned event was the Tail of the Dragon last July. After that I looked for more club events near me, but they only seemed to be in the larger metropolitan areas. After attending Treffen last fall, I knew that I wanted to be more involved. Seeing a need in my area, I volunteered to become the director for the Asheville area, and Quattro’s & Brews was born (a monthly meet at rotating breweries in and around the Asheville area). I am passionate about growing the Audi community not only in the Asheville area, but in the Carolinas as a whole. In addition to serving as the director for the Asheville area, I am also serving as a temporary board member for our chapter. As a Registered Nurse, I have a natural desire to learn and always seek improvement. I would like to see not only growth in our membership numbers, but to attract and retain great sponsors which can afford our club to provide more educational opportunities as well as fun social events allowing us enthusiasts to create even more of a bond. I want to increase our presence in our communities by hosting events to benefit local charities. Additionally, I want to engage with new members to help foster their interest in the brand and ensure that they feel welcome, respected, and happy to be a part of the Audi family as much as I do.
Christopher May – Triangle Region
It’s hard to believe it has been over 5 years since I left Maryland to call North Carolina my home. As a new transplant back then, I grew to miss the car community and friendships from back home and was actively looking for outlets where I could share my love for the Audi brand with others. Fast forward to a couple of years ago when I joined several Audi enthusiasts and friends in Raleigh to form Triangle Audi Group (“TAG”). As an independent group (unaffiliated with ACNA), there were both significant challenges and opportunities for developing an organization from the ground up. Fortunately, I was approached by Audi Club Carolinas to serve as our ACNA Chapter’s Area director for Raleigh. Working together with our Carolinas chapter and “TAG”, our shared goal has always been to provide the kinds of Audi events and experiences desired by our membership and community.
Professionally, I’ve worked in the non-profit space for well over 16 years. My career background is diverse and encompasses everything from comprehensive fundraising, marketing, non-profit board management, and project and financial management for small, medium and even national organizations. I’ve had the honor and privilege to leverage these skill sets as both an Audi Club Carolinas Board Director, and now as the current Interim Chapter Vice President. With the unprecedented growth of our chapter over the past few years, it is imperative that our organization adapt to address the changing and increasingly diverse needs of our membership. Considering my professional background, Area Director responsibilities, and undying love for all things Audi, I’m uniquely positioned to work with our board leaders to develop a strategic plan and set goals for scaling our membership, sponsors and partners across all of our chapter’s diverse geographic areas. Together we can accomplish our mission of driver education and create member and community experiences which celebrate the Audi brand.
Over the past few months, our current board leadership has already begun forging a new path for this process. As Interim VP, I’ve led the long-overdue charge to modernize our chapter’s governing bylaws and various administrative policies and procedures to promote fairness, equity, and transparency. This includes this very election process where you and your fellow members get to decide the future of our chapter. Regardless of the outcome, our leadership will be an inclusive representation of the ACNA members we serve. I hope you’ll consider casting your vote for me and giving me the opportunity to continue all the important work we’ve begun this year for our Carolinas chapter.
Chas Milson – Triangle Region
Hi and thank you for considering me for one of the Board of Directors for Audi Club Carolinas. My wife Kerry and I have been devout ACNA and Carolinas chapter members since we purchased our first Audi, a 2017 A6 prestige in Matador Red back in April 2017. Shortly after I bought our 2002 Audi TT 225 Roadster because we loved everything about the Audi brand and particularly the amazing sense of family we got with our Carolinas Chapter group. Plus I wanted a fun drop top to zip around in and nothing beats the feeling of the top down in a TT. The Audi club is very much a family affair for us as our six year old Lexie, which many of you know from helping out during the various events, loves the different events and seeing all of the cars. As a board member I hope to continue and expand these wonderful events that encourage inclusion of the younger generation so we can grow our club for future generations.
As a former motorcycle road racer with WERA and CCS I understand the value of track days and being able to build confidence on a closed course without the fear of other drivers on the road. I hope to add more track days and driving events as part of the Driver Education/HPDE committee that will not only be fun for the whole family but build confidence in our Chapter to make us all better drivers out in the wild. These events wouldn’t just be about driving as fast as you can around the track but hopefully will have the ability to show how your vehicle can handle various obstacles we might encounter out on the road. I would also like to have tech events similar to what we have had in the past discussing the importance of tires, brakes, suspension, etc. so our members can hopefully understand the various parts and how to maintain them when needed.
Thank you for considering me for a position on the board and I look forward to seeing you all at future events.
Rob Wilmoth – Triangle Region
Hello, by way of introduction, I’m Rob Wilmoth and have been a member of Audi Club since 2017, however I’ve been an Audi owner since 2014 (Audi S4), however currently own a 2018 Audi RS3. My involvement with Audi Club has been predominantly via the motorsports and performance enthusiast angle, with goals of bringing track events and other forms of high performance driving events back to the Carolinas within my term.
As an avid Audi and Motorsports enthusiast, I specifically work with novice track drivers as both an instructor as well as a track-side concierge to help with planning “the first track day”. I’m also a member of SCCA, and work with organizations such as Racing for ALS to ensure that their track days go off without a hitch. Simply put, I *LOVE* to see the terrific machines being put to use in a (safe) manner befitting the engineering pedigree from which they come. Whether that’s in concert with a competitive SCCA Track Weekend, or at a charity event at VIR, that’s where my true passion lies.
My goals for this position are simple:
1) Ensure that our current membership is well represented to keep everybody involved, in a coordinated and organized fashion.
2) Ensure that there is (continued) easy access to Motorsports events for folks new to Audi Club, at all levels of involvement. I believe the organization has done a great job of this in the recent years that I’ve been involved, and I simply hope to continue the trends of success to grow our membership
I live in the Louisburg NC area with my wife and 5 cats, and have a bachelor’s degree from Appalachian State University. I currently work at Red Hat as a Chief Architect.